


Teen Idle (I Wish I'd Been)

by michaelsbatmanboxers



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: 5 Seconds of Summer - Freeform, 5SOS - Freeform, Abusive Parents, Angst, Ash is a doctor, Cheating, Everyone Is Gay, Kinda, M/M, Made it up myself, Mikey Clifford, Prostitution, Rehab, Well - Freeform, ash irwin - Freeform, based off teen idle, cal hood, five seconds of summer - Freeform, flower power au, lots of unasked for angst, lucas hemmings, most people - Freeform, not really - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-21
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2018-09-01 06:26:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 47,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8612758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/michaelsbatmanboxers/pseuds/michaelsbatmanboxers
Summary: "Karen's eyes drifted over to Michael, who was staring blankly at Dr. Irwin. As Calum came in, she picked up a pen, desperate to save her son. The mother signed quickly, before sliding the papers to Dr. Irwin, who smiled happily."Welcome to Project Mistletoe" he beamed at her, before shaking her hand."(AU: In which everyone is born with flowers in their souls. As they get hurt, the flowers are stolen, given to whoever hurt them. If they run out, they become basically living corpses. Michael loses his last one and Karen is desperate to save him. That's when Michael meets Luke, who might just be his cure)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> wowie so this is going to be a little difficult to understand at first maybe so please just stick with it. According to responses I got on my other writing site, it's actually pretty decent. Anyway, thanks for reading! ALSO! Title is from Teen Idle by Marina and the Diamonds

Seventeen year old Michael sat, staring blankly at the posters that littered his walls, barely visible in the weak early morning light that trickled through his blinds. He heard quiet shuffling from the other end of the room, and was hit again with the sudden realization that Rob was leaving for the last time. Rob had officially broken up with him as soon as Mike confronted him about all the other boys Rob was with. As Rob swung out of Michael's room for the last time, the lavender haired boy felt a ripping sensation in his gut. The light behind his eyes slowly faded out as his second and last flower was torn away from him, given instead to Robert, who seems to have collected many flowers. Mike watched the last mole on his left thumb fade away until it almost wasn't there, before dropping his hand and staring at the wall, his eyes unfocusing slowly. 

Later that morning, Karen, Mike's mother, walked in to get him up for school. As soon as she stepped in the room, she realized something was wrong. Michael's spirit and excitability usually radiated in his room, shown by the posters, the pesky guitar picks always scattered around and just begging to be stepped on, the bright red of the walls and even the sunlight flowing into his room. But today, it was cold and empty, almost as if a giant vacuum had descended from the sky to suck all of the life out of Michael's room. Karen rushed to her son's side. She lifted up his left hand to check his flower marks, letting out a horrified gasp as she realized the mole had faded. 

The woman had known that Mike's first flower had been taken, and had attempted to keep him sheltered and safe, which proved to be pointless as he got more and more exposed in high school. However, as he was always such a positive boy, Karen didn't think she had any reason to worry. Yet here he was, a bright star, burnt to a crisp. Karen ran a hand through her hair, before rushing downstairs to her phone, dialing the therapist she had kept on speed dial, just in case. As she set up an appointment, she went to get Mike ready, who no doubtedly would need help, as he wouldn't see a point.

They pulled up to school and Karen hurried Michael to the principal's office. She sat him down, looking at the principal with a grim frown.

"So, I'm assuming Michael lost his final flower?" The principal questioned, his face falling as she nodded. "I had a daughter once. She lost hers, and she's still in rehab. I'll give Mike two school years, but if he's not back in spirit by then, I'm afraid we'll have to drop him as a student. It's a shame, too. He was such a delight to see around. I wish the best of luck for you two, and I offer my sincerest apologies."

Immediately after meeting with the principal, the mother rushed her son to see the therapist, Dr. Irwin. As they walked in, Mike continued to stare in the distance, a seemingly permanent frown etched onto his pale features. Karen sat Michael down in a giant leather chair, smiling at him sadly before sitting on a separate couch, her eyes filling in surprise as Dr. Irwin walked in.

"You're younger than I thought you'd be" Karen stated, and Dr. Irwin laughed quietly.

"Yes, I do get that a lot. It's nice that I'm keeping my youthful looks, though." Dr. Irwin paused for laughter. When he realized it wasn't coming, he sat down with a stony face. "So, Michael here lost his last flower. Do you know how?" Karen shook her head dejectedly, and Dr. Irwin made a small note. "No matter, what about his first flower, do you know how he lost that one?"

"Yeah. He was ten. His father had turned up late, yet again. Michael and I were watching old movies together when Daryl walked in drunk. He got angry because Mike was up past his bedtime, so we started fighting. It got to the point where he was packed up and about to leave, and I asked him if he was even thinking about our son. He looked Michael right in the eyes while saying he didn't care, then left us. Took a flower from both of us." Dr. Irwin nodded slowly, before marking down a note.

"Well, there's this experimental trial we'd like to introduce Mike to. Everybody is born with flowers in their souls. Some have more than others, making them emotionally stronger. Mike was obviously only born with two, and he's lost all of them, which left him as this unattached corpse, basically. Daryl and whoever hurt him last took his flowers as their own, and his body shut down to protect him from farther damage. However, scientists think they may have found a way to restore flowers from absolutely nothing. Basically, they'll give him an experimental drug, which will make his subconscious more open to feeling. We'll then introduce him to things to trigger extreme happiness, which, as you know, will allow the replacement of flowers. If successful, he should be back to his normal self in just a couple of weeks. Are you interested?" Dr. Irwin looked at Karen curiously, smiling softly as she nodded slowly. He leaned over to a small microphone resting on his desk, pressing a button and speaking into it kindly. "Calum, sweetie, do you mind bringing up the Mistletoe Files up please? Thanks, darling"

Karen's eyes drifted over to Michael, who was staring blankly at Dr. Irwin. As Calum came in, she picked up a pen, desperate to save her son. The mother signed quickly, before sliding the papers to Dr. Irwin, who smiled happily.

"Welcome to Project Mistletoe" he beamed at her, before shaking her hand.

 

A few weeks later, Karen pulled up to the care ward, where the experiment would be taking place. As she got out, Dr. Irwin walked to the car to meet her, with Calum the assistant following behind.

"Hello Dr. Irwin" Karen greeted as he got close enough, to which he laughed.

"Just call me Ashton, yeah? There are a couple patients that I need to introduce you and Michael to." And with that, he grabbed a couple suitcases of Mike's before walking into the building, with Calum close behind.

Karen picked up Michael's guitar case, before leading him into the lobby. It was a rather gloomy place. The walls were originally painted to be a bright, jovial yellow, but had since faded and cracked until it was an awful mix of green and yellow, like a murky, depressed version of chartreuse. The lobby's air itself smelled of strong disinfectant, making it nearly impossible to get used to the smell. The receptionist, who looked about two hundred years old, smiled a toothless smile as the small group walked in. Calum turned to Karen, his eyebrows pulled together.

"We haven't gotten enough funds yet to completely redo everything. But the patient's rooms, the cafeteria, and the therapy rooms are completely updated. Follow me, please." Calum spoke, before leading them to a small rec room, which was freshly painted a bold blue, and pieces of orange furniture scattered around. The Maori assistant smiled, nodding at the volunteer reading softly to the patients. "That's Luke. He's been helping since the beginning. He actually quit school to help out. You know, both of his brothers lost their last flowers, so that's probably where the passion comes from." He explained, while Ashton smiled at Karen.

"I'm going to make sure Michael's room is ready. Calum will handle the introductions" the curly haired man spoke softly, as to not disturb the therapy session, before walking out. Calum spoke up softly, smiling as a few of the flowerless turned toward him, barely recognizing his presence.

"Hey guys, you've got a new buddy. This is Michael Clifford. He's seventeen, and I'm sure you'll welcome him with open arms." Calum led Mikey to an open seat, sitting him down gently as Luke walked to Karen.

"Hello, ma'am. I assume you're Michael's mother?" The blond asked, and Karen nodded, smiling softly. Looking over him, she took to note his sapphire blue eyes and the black lip ring he chewed on softly. "It's very nice to meet you, ma'am. I'd just like to say that I believe in this program one hundred percent." He motioned towards a boy with curly hair. "That's Harry. He came here exactly like Michael has. He's been here for about three weeks and is just about back to normal. We're actually going to bring his boyfriend in tomorrow, who's planning on proposing. That'll give him the flower he needs to go back home the day after. Then a week later, we'll take him off of Xenoren, which is the drug the patients take in this program. Actually, he's mentioned during therapy that he'd like to volunteer when he's cured." Luke looked at Harry with what might have been pride, before clearing his throat. "Anyway, I think Michael will flourish here. Your son will be back in no time," the young man promised.

Suddenly, he had a pair of arms wrapped around him. He looked from Michael to the mother, who was clinging to him as if he was the only thing keeping her upright. Karen sobbed into the young man's shoulder, mumbling a string of gratitude.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much. You're such an angel." Luke smiled softly, rubbing her back gently.

"I'm just doing what I love." he answered as Calum took her arm gently.

"C'mon. You'll see him again soon." The young assistant comforted, before leading the sobbing woman out of the facility. With that, Luke walked over to the new patient, kneeling down to Michael's eye level, before speaking softly.

"Hey Mikey. Can I call you that? I'm Luke. It's nice to meet you. We're gonna make you feel so much better, alright?" Mike continued staring blankly as Luke babbled on. "It'll be great to get to know you. You're a cutie, you know?" Harry slowly turned to Luke, with the ghost of a smile playing over his lips.

"Lucas." He spoke quietly. Luke jumped slightly, looking over at the deep voiced man.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Stop..." Harry paused, searching for the correct word. "flirting! Stop flirting" He beamed softly, obviously very proud of himself for finding the word he was digging for. Luke smiled softly, shaking his head.

"You silly goose. I'm not flirting" Luke stated as Harry nodded as sarcastically as he could. Calum walked in slowly, smiling softly.

"Harry's gotten better. I'm proud of him" The British lad turned slowly towards Cal, his head cocked slightly. Calum sat next to Mike, frowning softly. "Do you think that Mike's gonna be a success?"

"Definitely. I'll bring him to his room. Is Dr. Irwin finished?"

"Yes. He's already started therapy with a patient. I can finish the book for you," Calum handed Luke a slip of paper with Mike's room number on it, before sitting on the chair, grabbing the book.

Luke helped Mike up, leading him gently to room 403 and setting him down delicately on his bed. He continued on to play one of the CD's Mike's mom left for him, before plopping down next to the pale boy. He noticed then that there was a sketch book sat on Michael's bed. He reached for it, flipping through it slowly. As soon as he opened it, he was greeted with small, very detailed sketches. The first one he really noticed was a drawing of a rather attractive man, labelled "Rob". Next to it had lyrics from love songs scrawled messily. Suddenly Mike tore out the page, his eyes filled with anger before going limp again, staring into the distance blankly.

"You don't like Rob very much, do you? I'm sorry, sweetheart." Luke sat in silence for a minute, listening to Ed Sheeran crooning softly from the speakers, before speaking up again. "Did he take your last flower?" Michael stared blindly, and Luke sighed. "It'll be a while before I know, I guess. I can't wait until you're able to open up. I'd really love to be your friend, you know?" Luke shook his head slowly, before looking at the clock. His eyes widened slightly as he saw what time it was. "Looks like it's lights out, huh?" The blue eyed boy helped Michael into his pajamas, before laying him in bed and walking to the door. "Goodnight Mikey. I'll see you in the morning." He got nothing but silence in response.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> aye thanks for the kudos! Hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

The next day, Luke walked in with a bottle of water and a pill for Michael. He paused when he noticed how peaceful the younger boy looked. His eyes were glued shut with his hair a complete mess from rolling around, and he was snoring just slightly. Watching him sleep, one could never tell that he was flowerless. Luke gently shook him awake despite the blond's desire to let the poor boy sleep.

"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty" He spoke softly, smiling at the blank eyed boy. "I hate to do this to you, but you've gotta get up. It's your first day!" Luke helped him sit up, before sitting next to him slowly. Opening the pill bottle, Luke tipped a pill out for the day. He handed Mike his med, before opening the water bottle. As he turned back to the young patient, he suddenly remembered that Mike would need help to even get the pill in his mouth. So, Luke grabbed the pill gently, opening Michael's mouth slowly before popping the pill into his mouth. He then put the water bottle to his lips, tilting it up so just enough water flowed out to successfully swallow the pill. The blond watched as the younger boy's eyebrows pulled together, slowly swallowing the fluid, and with it, the pill. As soon as Michael had taken the pill, he reached for the water bottle and started chugging it hungrily, leaving Luke laughing softly. 

"You must be pretty hungry, too. Let's get you to breakfast, yeah?" He stood up as Michael finished the bottle, taking him to the cafeteria. "It's pancake day today." He spoke softly, setting Mike down. The young volunteer walked to the cooks, grabbing two plates before sitting next to Michael, smiling slightly as Harry wondered over, sitting across from Luke. The blue eyed boy nodded at the patient, slowly feeding Michael.

"Did you have to food me?" Harry spoke, unaware of his incorrect grammar, but Luke was happy that the older man was even able to talk at all.

"Yes. I had to feed everyone here at one point."

"I'm sorry. I didn't knew that happen." Harry looked at the ground, chewing on his lip, and Luke's eyes filled with fondness for the bashful patient. 

"Hey, look at me." The young man set down the fork, leaving Michael staring in the distance. Harry looked at the blond, frowning softly. "It's okay. You couldn't help it, sweetie. It's not your fault that you ended up here. However, it was your strength that brought you back. It was you that did all the fighting. All the struggling. That was you. I just helped you a bit, and Dr. Irwin just gave you the tools to cope as you returned. But it was you that did the hard work." Luke finished his rant with a sob, before wiping his eyes quickly. "You know, I only have one flower left. I was born with five and I lost them all. And who knows? Maybe someday I'll be in the exact same place as you. We might switch." The blond laughed humorlessly. Harry reached for Luke's hand slowly, to which the boy sent him a quick smile. "You're such a sweetheart. Thank you" Slowly pulling his hand away, Luke returned to feeding Michael, who hadn't even noticed he'd stopped. 

Later that afternoon, Luke was playing his guitar and singing softly to the patients, when Dr. Irwin and Calum walked in, accompanied by a brown haired boy with bright blue eyes. The (rather short) man was dressed in a sharp black suit, with a small grin etched onto his features. The few flowerless that were able to turned to watch, while Luke seamlessly switched from the previous song to Photograph by Ed Sheeran, singing and playing softly as the man greeted his boyfriend. 

"Harry Styles" He started, laughing softly as the curly haired man interrupted without knowing it.

"Louis Tomlinson" 

"Shush I'm being cute" A smile tugged at Harry's lips, not quite there yet. "Harold Edward Styles. I have known you since we were just kids and I've been madly in love with you since we were fifteen. Now, seven years later, my love for you has only grown, rather exponentially in fact. And we've had bumps in the road, much like many other relationships do, but we've powered through each and every one of them. And you being flowerless? It's just another pothole that we'll pull out of. So I'm asking if you would," He paused, pulling out a small black box and dropping to one knee. "marry me?" He slowly opened the box, revealing a small, diamond encrusted ring with a small emerald the same colour as Harry's eyes delicately placed in the middle. 

Harry's face suddenly went slack, his gaze going off into the distance, not noticing anyone around him. Dr. Irwin's eyes filled with alarm and Luke stopped strumming abruptly, looking up at Harry in an odd mixture of pity, fright, and sorrow. 

"But, the science was all there! It was supposed to work!" Dr. Irwin spoke in a panic, running a hand through his hair. Louis' eyes flashed, his eyebrows drawing together and channeling his anger to Dr. Irwin

"You promised it would work!" He snapped, and Dr. Irwin tugged on his hair, raising his voice to a volume almost unheard of from the man.

"I didnt say shit, the science promised it would fucking work!" The normally calm man shouted. Dr. Irwin never yelled, unless extremely stressed or someone was in danger. Yet here he was, not holding back in the least bit. Luke stood up, setting his guitar down and speaking softly.

"Guys. You're scaring the patients." He motioned to a couple of the more receptive of the flowerless, some of which had their hands over their ears and others simply with an alarmed look in their eyes.

"Look at his eyes" Calum was the first voice of reason to speak through the pandemonium. The other three men looked up at Harry's eyes, which were slowly lightening up, almost as if he was coming back to life. "He's growing his flower back" And with that, Harry broke into a grin. 

"Of course I'll marry you. I love you." Louis slipped the ring onto Harry's finger, before standing up and hugging him softly. Dr. Irwin, Calum,and Luke all clapped softly, and Harry pulled away slowly, leaving a small kiss on Louis' nose before turning to the trio that had worked relentlessly to save him from himself. "So. You have an open spot on the team?" The three hugged him tightly, both laughing and crying in relief with their backs turned to the patients. And if they missed the smallest, briefest hint of a smile tugging on Michael's lips, no one had to know. 

Later that evening, Harry came skipping into the cafeteria, and plopped next to Louis, who was speaking with Luke over dinner. 

"Both of your brothers?" Louis questioned sympathetically, and Luke nodded, pressing the fork against Michael's lips. 

"And my mom and dad. I've been living by myself for the last three years." Luke answered, cutting up another piece for Mike. "It's okay, I mean. But I wouldn't mind something there with me. Like a pet. Or a boyfriend" Louis chuckled softly.

"You're only eighteen, you'll have plenty of time to find someone you love. You don't need a boyfriend right this instant" the older lad replied, and Luke scoffed softly, shaking his head slightly. After finishing feeding Michael, he picked up his own fork and started eating. 

"I think you and Michael would be cute together." Harry spoke, and Luke shot him daggers. 

"He can understand you"

"Good. You deserve happiness too, Luke." Harry said softly, reaching for Luke's hand. "You work so hard and give so much. Don't you want to get anything in return?" As Luke opened his mouth to respond, Dr. Irwin walked in. 

"Luke? Can I speak to you?" Luke slowly stood up, walking over to the therapist, who led Luke into his office. As the young volunteer sat down, he looked at the many trinkets littering the shelves of the room he had never before entered. There was a queen bed in an offset room with half closed doors, hinting that the head of the experiment hadn't gone home for a while, maybe even since the beginning. The office was the last thing on the list to be updated, so it remained a putrid, pukish green. On the desk had a collection of bobble heads, ranging from Gerard Way to Oprah, spread over the surface. There were also files labelled with each patient's name, one for each. The shelves had figurines from comic books, mostly Marvel but some DC mixed in as well. Sitting alongside some of the figurines were pictures of the doctor and his assistant from when they were younger, including a picture of their wedding day and a picture of them with a band, all the members laughing and waving at the camera. In front of it were two delicately placed drumsticks. A sudden chuckle broke Luke out of his trance. 

"I used to be a drummer in a silly little band called Evolution Trial. It never got too big, so we broke up. I actually haven't seen Jack or Hendrix in a while. They've got their own band to worry about now that's made it to the big time, but they still call every once in a while. It's not a big deal, I mean, I've got Calum." Dr. Irwin shook his head, chuckling softly and sitting at his desk. "Anyway. You've done such great work, and I want to hire you officially so you can quit your job instead of working nights there and days here" Luke's sapphire eyes filled with tears as the older man continued. "We've been green lighted for steady funding due to Harry's success, and Calum and I decided to pay you, because honestly we wouldn't be able to get anything done without you. How does $5,000 a month sound?" A sob ripped out of Luke's chest, and the doctor walked around his desk, hugging the boy into his chest. 

"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much" the newly recruited worker spoke in a jumble and Dr. Irwin laughed softly. 

"Just helping you do what you love." Luke laughed through his tears and Dr. Irwin let go of his new employee. "We'll be paying Harold as well, but not quite as much. He'll be getting $2,500 a month. Still livable, but we decided that you deserved just a bit more for all your hard work" The older man handed Luke some tissues, a small smile etched on his face. "Now, why don't you go finish your dinner, yeah?" Luke nodded, slowly getting up. As he started out, Ashton called after him. "Luke? I'm very proud of you."

"Thank you, sir." The doctor smiled fondly as the young man he had come to think of as a son walked out, and slipped his glasses back on to continue his work. As Luke returned to his seat in the cafe, he noticed that Louis had left, and Harry was escorting patients to their rooms for the night. Luke finished eating quickly, before helping him finish. He then walked to each patient's room, helping those who needed it and wishing a goodnight to those who didn't. He saved Michael for last, and walked into the young man's room. As Luke helped him change, he spoke to the patient softly about his day. 

"Mikey, guess what? I'm getting paid now. I'll be able to actually afford to sleep more than two hours. Anyway, you got to see a proposal today. It was less of you seeing it and more hearing it. But our first patient was cured. His name is Harry, and he's going to start working here as well." Luke slipped Mike's pajama shirt over the boy's pale torso, before helping him into bed, as he seemed to prefer no pants. Luke then sat next to the boy. "I know you understand what's going on, and you're just unable to react, but Dr. Irwin likes us to recap the patient's first few days to them. I don't mind, actually. It's nice to get to know them. And I guess it helps them know me better too, when they start returning to reality. I hope that's soon for you. Your mom misses you a lot." Luke sighed heavily, before shrugging a bit "Looks like it's time for me to go home." He got up, walking to the door and flicking the light off. "Goodnight, Mikey" And Luke will be damned if he didn't hear a jumbled mutter in response as he shut the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wowie I got a little carried away writing this chapter. It's a little longer than most, so I'm going to take a break uploading this for a few days while I work on other chapters.

A couple weeks later, Mike had already started speaking in fragmented phrases. This meant that he was finally starting therapy with Dr. Irwin. 

"So, Michael, do you remember how you lost your last flower?" Dr. Irwin asked. The young man hesitated, before nodding slowly with his eyebrows pulled together. The doctor hesitated slightly, before talking slowly. "And... do you wanna talk about it?" Mike shook his head quickly. "That's okay. Michael, it's going to be hard to help you if you don't let us. Hopefully you let us in. It's the only way to fix you". Mike shrugged slightly, and Dr. Irwin sighed. "Alright, well, I guess I'll call Chase to get you to bed." 

Since Harry, there had been more successes, and at least half of those decided to volunteer for Mistletoe. Ashton was staying in one of the patients quarters as his office was finally getting fixed. Everything else was renovated over the last few weeks, and the facility had 24/7 volunteers. Chase was one of the night ones, starting at 10 pm and ending at 9 am, where the morning volunteers would take over until 10 pm. He was in his early 20's and had entered the program after his best friend had committed suicide. He was assigned to two patients, Michael and Axel, and traded off with Luke in the morning. 

Axel was a rather new patient, and no one really knew why he was here. One day while walking to work, Harry noticed a boy sitting on a porch step and staring into space. He had two fully packed suitcases thrown next to him, as if someone had kicked him out. As of now, no one knows why. They also don't know any contacts for the young man, even though they've shared his story countless times through the news and social media. He seems as if he's refusing to get better. 

Chase spoke softly as he was changing Michael. 

"So how was your day today?" the volunteer asked, and Mike looked over at him slowly. The light behind his eyes still wasn't there, leaving his eyes a dull green, and he responded in a completely flat voice.

"Was okay. Luke wrote song. It is called." Michael paused, trying to remember the name of the song. His eyes slowly filled with tears as he realized he just couldn't remember. He started sobbing, and Chase quickly pulled the younger boy into his arms, his eyes squeezing shut. "I'm a bad friend, such a bad friend, I can't even remember Luke's song that's bad." Chase hushed him softly, holding the lavender haired boy close to his chest. 

"Mike, you're not a bad person, amnesia is a common side effect of the treatment. It's not your fault." The volunteer spoke, but the younger man was not to be consoled. He continued muttering nonsense into Chase's chest, sobs racking through his body, until he eventually fell asleep. Chase didn't want to move, as to not disturb the young boy and ended up spending the night in the boy's room, with Mike nuzzled into his chest. 

Luke walked in the next morning with his guitar and a new song freshly written, ready to sing it to the first person; Michael. However, as he walked in, he noticed the young boy snuggled up to Chase. Luke's eyes widened, before jumping out of the room quickly, storming away and throwing the crumpled up sheet of paper into the garbage, with the name of the song showing for anyone passing by to see. It was called Too Late. 

 

Michael may not be completely healed, but he can still understand when something is wrong, and he can understand that Luke's been acting weird recently. While he acted normal around Axel, the blue eyed boy was distant when dealing with Michael. Mike was surprised to realize that it hurt. Luke was basically his best and only friend at this point, and to suddenly be shoved away was shocking. He wasn't even called Mikey anymore, just Michael. This led to Michael ranting to Chase every night before going to bed, and Chase getting more and more irritated as he realized Luke wasn't going to grow up. One day, after taking Michael to therapy and asking Shelby to watch Axel for a second, Chase jogged after Luke as he exited the building, grabbing him by his wrist and pulling him back quickly, his eyes narrowing to a deadly glare.

"Luke, would you like to tell me why Michael's been crying to me about you?" The taller man tugged his hand away, averting his gaze. "Because you know how easy it is for patients to relapse. And if there's a problem with taking care of Michael, then you need to tell Dr. Irwin. I'm not going to let him get hurt because you can't stop being an asshole." Chase snapped, and Luke rounded on him, straightening to his full height and towering over Chase by a good five inches. 

"I'm sorry? You don't want me to take care of your boyfriend?" He continued on heatedly as Chase's eyes filled with confusion. "He's been the first person to hear any new songs, and I've been the first one to take care of him. You barely even know him! Why are you taking advantage of him?"

"Taking advantage of him? What do you mean?"

"Don't play pretend, you little- I saw you guys." Luke hesitated, searching for the right word before spitting it out, "canoodling! A couple nights ago? Don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about!" Suddenly, Chase's eyes widened, recognition flooding his features. 

"Oh, Luke... that wasn't what it looked like" Chase hushed the blond as he opened his mouth to start talking. "I was only there because he literally cried himself to sleep. You wanna know why?" Luke hesitated, before nodding slowly. "He couldn't remember the name of the song that you had shared with him. He felt like he was a bad person because of it. It's not his fault, and you know that better than anyone here." The other man's eyes widened, before staring at the ground and shoving his hands into his pockets. "and Luke? I'm straight. I've got a girlfriend." Chase snorted softly, before pulling the taller man into his chest, hugging him tightly, then he pulled away quickly and checked the time. "Crap... I've got a meeting with Calum. You have a good night, alright Luke? And I better see you coming in with a new song tomorrow for Michael as an apology. He really does enjoy them." As Chase ran in, Luke called after him. 

"That song? The one Mikey couldn't remember the name of? The Perfect Disguise. Let him know please." Chase saluted him, before ducking inside the facility. As the young worker walked home, he had his hands tucked into his pockets and started nodding along to a beat. Different lyrics ran through his head, before finally settling on some that he could write for the patient. He started mumbling them to himself as he walked along. 

"Talking to him nearly every day, he really likes all the games that you play..." He trailed off, running through the words that rhymed with 'play' before constructing the next line. "He told me to tell you to see what you'd say..." Luke ran home after that, not wanting to lose any of the lyrics. As soon as he was inside the house, he plopped down at his desk and started scribbling away, adding in chords that he thought would sound good as he went along. When he did finish, he wasn't able to come up with a name for the song. Then he realized it'd be a perfect opportunity to help Axel and Michael; give them the chance to help him write and name songs. He grinned, putting aside the song and pulling on his pajamas, bursting with enthusiasm about his new idea. As Luke fell asleep, he cuddled his stuffed penguin close to him, and he would've given anything to trade it for a small, lavender haired boy. 

 

The next day, Luke skipped to work with his guitar in hand, his song notebook safely tucked away in his bag. It was October, and as he looked around, he could see the beautiful colour of the leaves contrasting against the clear blue sky. He took a deep breath, relishing in the crisp autumn air, and an unexplainable feeling of optimism in his gut told him it would be a good day. He stepped into the rehab center on his way to work, nodding at one of the all too familiar nurses. He walked to the check in desk, setting his guitar and backpack down for her to keep safe and signing in, before heading to down the sterile halls. The major difference between this rehab center and the one he worked in is that this place is fairly well funded, although this one's system doesn't seem to work. Luke would know. His family has been here for the last three years. 

 

 

Luke started living alone at age fifteen, and while he had the option to move in with family, he would've rather stayed home and kept it nice until his parents and older brothers were better. Unfortunately, that never happened, and eventually Luke's low paying job at the Burger King down the street just wasn't enough to keep his house. He moved to an apartment complex in a bad part of town, and had to do somethings to survive that he wasn't proud of. At one point, Luke was reduced to selling himself out for money. That's what he was doing when a blond haired man rolled up in his car, and his Maori passenger rolled down the window. Luke started sauntering over to them, but stopped suddenly when the passenger asked him one question he hadn't heard in quite a few years. 

"Are you okay, sweetie?" At that, Luke had broken down on the side of the street. With unspoken agreement, the married couple helped Luke into the car, before pulling away and taking him to a restaurant. Not like a Burger King, but an actual restaurant with actual seats and menus so Luke could actually sit and eat. He hadn't had that luxury in quite a long time. 

"Order anything, alright? It's on us" The older (yet shorter) man spoke, and Luke shook his head quickly, opening his mouth to argue. The man cut Luke off. "Please. Don't argue. Just find something you enjoy, yeah? What's your name?" Luke looked down, debating whether he should give them his real name. In the end, he decided to trust them. 

"My name is Luke"

"It's very nice to meet you, Luke. I'm Calum, and this is my husband, Ashton. How old are you?" Calum spoke, and that's when Luke noticed the rings on their fingers. 

"I- uhm. I'm seventeen." Calum gasped sympathetically, and shot a glance at Ashton, who seemed just as shocked. 

"Only seventeen and selling yourself? Luke, you can be so much more than that. Don't you have a home? Or a family?" Luke shook his head slightly, and Calum reached across the table, grabbing his hand softly while Ashton continued on. "I'm so sorry. You know... I could help you get a job. You'd just have to promise to try to keep it. I can only help you if you let me try" Luke's eyes slowly raised up to meet Ashton's, the younger man's filling with tears. 

"You'd really do that? For me?" Ashton nodded softly, smiling just slightly. 

"But before we get too far, the poor boy still needs to eat" Calum spoke up, pushing the menu towards Luke. Luke found out many things that night, like what it was like to actually have friends. What it was like to finally open up. And of course, he rediscovered how good chili was. On the opposite side, the married couple learned about Luke's parents and brothers, and were able to find out what it was like to be somebody's entire world, even if only for a moment. After that, Luke did everything he could to help the men that gave him everything. And when they asked him to volunteer at Project Mistletoe a year later, who was he to deny them? 

 

That's what led Luke to here, with a well paying job and a nice apartment close to his family's rehab center. As he walked in the room, his heart clenched seeing them unable to compute. He kneeled next to his mother, grabbing her hand gently and closing his eyes tightly, wishing she was still able to hold him like she did when he was five. He started pushing her away at age twelve, not knowing what came next. He's felt like an ass everyday since, and wished she was able to kiss his cheek just one more time. His brothers were next. Luke hugged both of them gently, his eyes closing softly. After breaking those hugs, he moved on to his father. He never really knew what to do when visiting his father, so he would sit beside him while telling all of them stories about what was going on in his life. Today, he continued talking about Michael for a little while, before talking about his new song. After describing the altercation with Chase, he smiled softly, before getting up slowly. 

"I love you guys so much. But I really must be getting to work. I'll see you in a week, okay?" The blond man walked out to the hallway, proceeding to check out and start on his way to work again. He got there with just enough time to spare, clocking in quickly before heading to Axel's room to get him up for breakfast. He woke the young man, walking him to the cafe before going to fetch Michael. Michael was finally able to feed himself, so Luke was able to focus on feeding Axel while speaking with Mikey.

"I wrote a new song! You guys get to name it for me" Luke said, and Mikey looked up at the older boy, obviously interested. 

"ooooh, what it about?" He inquired, and Luke chuckled softly. 

"You'll have to wait and find out, won't ya?" Luke answered, and Michael huffed softly. 

"I want know now!" He pouted, and Luke had to admit the younger boy had never looked more precious. His eyes were still a flat green, of course, and his voice was still flat, but he was able to emote just a little bit. And what little bit he was able to emote, he used to his full advantage. Luke smiled teasingly, before answering the "distressed" patient. 

"After lunch, okay? I promise" 

"Okay..." Michael answered with as close to mock sadness as he could get, before continuing to eat. 

After eating, Michael wanted to go to the rec room, which was now filled with TVs, video games, board games, and even an air hockey table. None of the flowerless smiled and none of them laughed. However, it was obvious by their jumbled sentences and the way they begged to go back that they enjoyed it, and it soon became an incentive for the less cooperative of the flowerless. So, Luke escorted Mikey to the rec room, where one of the volunteers was stationed for the day. Michael immediately walked over to the Xbox, sitting next to one of the other gamers and picking up the fourth controller, adding himself into the game before launching into it. Luke turned around to leave, before noticing something stirring behind the blankness in Axel's eyes. As Luke observed him, it became obvious that Axel wanted to join. Luke sighed, grabbing Axel's hand and leading him away. 

"I'm sorry, buddy. But you gotta get better before you go in, okay? So let's work together to make you feel better, yeah?" Luke smiled softly at the young patient, who stared blankly back at him, before leading him away to a group therapy session.

Meanwhile, Michael had gotten extremely bored of playing Minecraft. So he got up and lumbered over to the Wii area, where a group of three were playing Band Hero. With a bass player, a singer, and a drummer, there was a free guitar. So Mike walked up and grabbed the open remote, sitting on the couch next to the bass player and waited to join the game. After finishing the song they were playing, they allowed him to add himself in, before turning slowly to introduce themselves. 

"Hello," the singer started, "I am Ashley Frangipane. To meet you is nice." she stated, clearly proud that she was able to force it out. She had very short hair, which was coloured a very pretty shade of blue. She had freckles covering her cheeks like dust, and Mike was able to see tattoos all over her arms. Mike nodded shyly at her, before jumping slightly as the bassist started talking. 

"I am Liam Payne. I play bass goodly in real life too," He stated. This one had brown hair and brown stubble. His eyes were a nice shade of light brown, and he had less tattoos than Ashley, but they were still there. "Do you play guitar for real or not?" Mike nodded softly, to which Liam seemed to approve of. The next one to talk was the drummer.

"Niall Horan my name is. I also play drums for real." This one was extremely pale, although not paler than Michael. Unlike the others, he had no tattoos. However, his blonde hair was brown at the roots. He had blue eyes, and it seemed as though they would be just as bright as even Luke's if they had the spark behind him. "Ready to play?" Michael nodded, and they started playing.

He seemingly lost track of time, because next thing he knew, Luke was calling him from the doorway. Mike turned towards his friend, who motioned him over. When Michael got to Luke, the worker smiled softly at the young patient. 

"Come on sweetie, it's lunch time." As if on cue, Michael's stomach growled rather loudly. Luke chuckled softly, before grabbing Michael's hand. "You sound hungry. Let's go." Luke grabbed Axel's hand as well, before walking them to the cafeteria. 

"Luke? I wanna play game with them again." Luke looked over at the young patient in surprise. He had entered around the same time as Ashley, Liam, and Niall had, but until this point they hadn't had any contact with each other. However, Luke wasn't complaining. He was happy that Michael was finally making friends that weren't him. Hopefully the new friends would last outside of the rehab center. Michael really enjoyed playing guitar, and these other patients also had instruments at home. However, seeing as they were too loud or too cumbersome to keep in their rooms, the three were reduced to playing Band Hero together.

However, Luke has noticed that Michael always seems more alert, almost more alive when he was playing his guitar. So the worker had been talking to Dr. Irwin about introducing a new therapy program that would teach patients how to play guitar. He had already agreed to try it out with a test group of patients when they were receptive enough to start, but only after Michael had exited the program. The problem with changing the worker assigned to patients is that one of the few things that the flowerless can recognize is routine. If they have the same people talking to them everyday at around the same time, it's easier for them to cope with everything. Dr. Irwin figured this out the hard way when more volunteers came in, which led to patients relapsing and falling behind on where the treatment was supposed to have them at that point in time. 

Luke nodded in response to Michael's proclamation, thinking it over. If he could set up a time with Niall's, Liam's, and Ashley's caretakers every week where they could meet up and play together, it may help them on the route to recovery. 

"I think we just may be able to make that happen." Luke responded, watching the boy continue eating. As he fed Axel, he took in the more receptive patient's appearance in. The young man had changed a lot since entering the program. When he first entered, his hair was a nice shade of lilac and at a reasonable length. At this point in time, however, Michael's natural dirty blond roots were grown out. It was way too long, and kept falling in his face, which made him have to push it out of his eyes constantly. It was obvious Mike found it annoying, but Luke thought it was honestly the cutest thing he'd ever seen. 

The younger boy got up, walking his tray to the cafeteria workers before walking back, at which point Axel had finished eating. After putting away Axel's tray, Luke led them to one of the therapy rooms, closing the door behind them before pulling out his guitar. He played through the song he had written the night before, before looking up at Michael and Axel. 

"So, what do you think I should name it?" Michael looked down for a second, before looking up quickly.

"I've Got This Friend." He looked at Axel, who stared into the distance, and Luke's face lit up. 

"Michael! You're a genius!" He exclaimed. 

"Who that for?" Mike asked, his head tilted. Luke blushed brightly, while shrugging slightly and looking away. 

"Just a friend." Luke responded, and Mike snorted.

"Obviously." Michael hesitated, taking a deep breath, before continuing on. "Maybe you write another one for him? He'd like it I think if you sing for him." Luke's eyes met Mike's, and noticed the patient's eyebrows were pulled tightly together. It was the most emotion the worker had ever seen Mike express, and it was heartbreaking. Michael looked almost sad, and Luke felt couldn't help feeling responsible. Mike continued talking, his eyes squinting. "Love song would work. Boys like love songs" After that, Michael stopped talking. Luke shook his head slightly, before taking Michael to Dr. Irwin's therapy session, before leading Axel to the group therapy for the less receptive. 

 

As he got there, Luke noticed Harry was about to walk out. He tapped the older man's shoulder, whispering into Harry's ear softly.

"I need to talk to you. Please meet me in my office in about five minutes." Luke requested, and the British man nodded slowly, before heading off to Luke's office. Meanwhile, Luke sat Axel down in a cushioned seat. He then turned to the volunteer that was reading the first of the Harry Potter books with the newer of the flowerless. 

"Listen, Axel's going to be a little harder than the rest of the people to cure. So he's probably going to be in this room for a couple weeks longer than the rest of the flowerless." The volunteer nodded slightly, sitting down to start the therapy session. Luke then walked to meet Harry in his office, and as soon as he stepped into the room, the sapphire eyed boy was no longer able to hold it back. He collapsed into Harry's chest, sobbing and clinging to him tightly. Harry pulled Luke into his chest, holding the younger boy close. Now, Harry had no idea what was happening, but Luke helped Harry out of a bad place, and he'd be damned if he didn't attempt to return the favor. 

"Luke... what's wrong?" Harry spoke softly, soothingly, to Luke. Luke just shook his head, unable to choke it out through his tears. So, Harry just held the blond closer, slipping his eyes shut and allowing the younger boy to cry it out. After a couple minutes of patting and shushes and head kisses, Luke was finally able to respond. 

"I ruined it. I screwed everything up and now he hates me." The Aussie managed to choke out, and Harry shook his head. 

"Oh Luke... Sweetheart, if you're talking about Michael then you're extremely mistaken. Just by the way he talks about you, it's easy to tell he likes you. And those songs? They're his favourite parts of the day! Being able to listen to you sing just makes him feel so much better. He mentioned it in group therapy once. Have you told him that those songs are about him?" Luke shook his head dejectedly, and Harry groaned softly. "That's the problem, you know. You keep writing all these love songs and you don't tell them who about? What do you expect him to think? He's assuming that you truly don't like him the way he likes you. And you've gotta fix that. I'm expecting you to come in with a brand new love song tomorrow, just for him. I'll even help you write it after work today. He'd love it. It'll fix everything. You've gotta snatch him while he likes you, don't miss your chance. Luke, you've gotta be able to call him yours. And when you can? Well, you gotta treat him like a goddamn prince. Okay?" Luke nodded slightly, and Harry smiled softly. "Alrighty. You've got five minutes to go wash your face before you're expected to be picking Axel and Michael up." Luke hugged the older man yet again, and Harry laughed softly. "Go on. You can't be looking like crap when you go to pick up your boo." Luke snorted softly, hitting Harry upside the head before walking into the bathroom.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "a few days"

Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, Dr. Irwin had finally convinced Michael to open up a bit. 

"And who's Rob?" The doctor asked soothingly, and Mike looked down. 

"Ex boyfriend. I loved him. He told me I was one he only loved forever. And he told me so. But when he leaved my house he kissed other boys. I told him no more kissing them. And he said no more us." Dr. Irwin paused, waiting for more. When it was obvious that the young boy would not continue, the doctor tried poking farther. 

"Mike, did he take your final flower?" Dr. Irwin was met with silence, and he decided to take a different route. "Alright, what about your dad?" Michael came alive with that. 

"He hit mommy lotsa times. Made her cry. When mommy cries I don't like it. I love her. Him though I hate. I wanna hit him and make him cry. He made mommy cry. He deserves to cry." It shocked the doctor to hear the mellow boy talk so vehemently, and the doctor shook his head quickly. 

"Mike, no. You can't become one of those people that're always angry, one of those people always out for revenge. As Ghandi once said, 'an eye for an eye makes the whole world go blind,'. Michael, you deserve so much better than to always be angry. Your future deserves so much better. You know, Luke had a really bad past. But you know him now. And he's such a sweet and caring young man. Imagine if he had let the bitterness consume him. But instead he's here trying to cure people." Michael looked down, and Dr. Irwin spoke softly. "You promise that you'll try to let go of that anger?" The patient nodded, and Dr. Irwin lit up with a grin. "Perfect. Do you mind writing or drawing in your notebook for me tonight? Just to get out your thoughts?" He smiled as Michael nodded again, before jotting Michael's assignment down on a sheet of paper, and sent it out with Michael to Luke. 

As the worker read the note, he smiled softly. That would give the boys something to do between now and dinner time. Michael could draw while Luke told Axel about his day, before telling him stories. As they walked down the hallway, it seemed apparent that Michael had forgiven Luke. He babbled down the hallway about what he was going to draw, and Luke smiled. He was right this morning. It had been a good day, and all was right in his world. 

 

When they got to Michael's room, the worker sat the young boys on the bed. While Michael sketched on in content, Axel was sitting next to him while watching on blankly. He seemed as interested as he could be in what the other patient was doing, and Michael spoke in fragmented sentences about what he was drawing to Axel. 

"This is a rose because mommy likes rose. I like lavender. Lavender is my favourite flower. It is why my hair is purple. I like the colour. And it smells good." Michael continued his sketch, and Luke smiled as the young boy babbled on to the unresponsive patient. "Also my hair had pink and blue and even black. But my hair is I think blond. I don't like my hair long. It is bug me." Luke snorted softly at that, and Michael looked up to him with a slight expression of confusion covering his features. "Why Luke laugh?" The worker shook his head slightly. 

"It's nothing bad, I promise. I just think it's funny that it bugs you when it looks so pretty." Luke stated, and Michael took a second to process this before responding softly. 

"I am no pretty. Rob stayed if I pretty." Mikey stared longingly at the rose sketched in his notebook. "I wish I was pretty like rose. Or lavender," Luke looked at him in shock. How could Michael not see himself as the stunning boy that he is? How could this cute, shy, and creative being just not see any of it? As far as Luke was concerned, Michael's beauty was a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel. The young boy almost glowed with the aura of a God, even with his empty eyes and flat voice. And yet all of this was lost on the young boy's eyes. And Luke was going to tell him everything he thought about the boy. As the worker opened his mouth to speak he was cut off. By a voice other than Michael's. 

"I think.... ve...very pretty? No bad. Pretty even more flower." Axel spoke softly, his voice cracked and broken from months of no use. Luke's head snapped over to the other boy with wide eyes. Axel continued staring into the distance, and Michael turned to him. 

"I thought you no talk?" Michael spoke hesitantly, and Axel turned towards Michael's voice just slightly, but didn't respond. Luke marked it down in his notebook quickly, before turning to Michael. 

"I think you're really cute. Alright? And if anyone else tells you otherwise then they're lying." Michael opened his mouth to respond before Calum stepped in the room. 

"Hey guys. I'm so sorry to interrupt, but it's dinner time." Luke nodded, handing Calum his notebook. After dinner, they'd lounge around before Chase took over, and there would be no reason for Luke to take any notes. 

"I think Ash will find my most recent note particularly interesting." Luke winked softly, before walking his patients to the cafeteria.

As they got there, Michael immediately perked up as he noticed it was baked chicken day. He started bouncing excitedly, clapping softly, before grabbing Luke's sleeve and trying to drag him along behind him. The young worker laughed softly, walking behind the boy. Luke nodded at the lunch lady, who was already used to giving Michael two chicken breasts as opposed to one, so he wouldn't have to come up for seconds. However, she avoided giving any to Axel, as she had it marked down that he was probably vegetarian. This was found out after Luke realized that Axel absolutely refused to open his mouth if Luke was trying to feed him meat. However, he would drink milk and he seemed to like butter, so Dr. Irwin and Luke came to the conclusion that Axel was in fact vegetarian. Instead of serving him the chicken breast, the lunch lady gave him a salad with ranch for his main course. However, he got the same as everyone else other than that, including mashed potatoes and gravy, milk, water, or apple juice, and a dinner roll with butter. Michael didn't hesitate when he grabbed his apple juice, and Luke grabbed Axel a milk.

After sitting the patients down at a table, Luke walked back up to grab himself a dinner. That's when the lunch lady started speaking to him.

"So, you think Michael's going to be getting out soon?" She asked, and Luke shrugged softly. 

"Well, you do remember that some patients who get out sometimes have to come back in. Dr. Irwin thinks that Michael might have to undergo a portion of a second treatment, but I think he'll be fine. He's a strong boy." the worker replied, and the lunch lady sighed. 

"I'll miss seeing him, but I guess it's for the best" Luke nodded at that, before walking back to his patients. Michael was already starting on the second chicken breast, while Axel was staring at his salad. Luke sat down, picking up a fork and started feeding Axel. Harry came up, sitting his patients down at the table and started eating, both of his patients being able to feed themselves. 

"Are we still on for tonight?" Harry inquired, and Luke glanced at him.

"Yeah. We can just walk to my house together." Harry sent him a questioning look.

"You don't have a car?" He asked, and Luke scoffed.

"Of course I have a car. But I only live like 45 minutes away so I don't need to use it." Harry nodded softly, before continuing to eat while listening to the soft music playing in the background. A few days after Harry had healed, Dr. Irwin had asked him and Luke to make a playlist full of soft, relaxing songs. Among them, Luke managed to slip in some of Michael's favourite Ed Sheeran songs, as well as quite a few other soft songs that the two boys knew of. It was rather difficult for them to find the right type of songs, considering their music tastes, but after going through Michael's iPod, they were able to find quite a few soft artists. The patients seemed to enjoy the songs, some of the more receptive of the flowerless mouthing the words silently. 

As soon as Luke finished feeding Axel, he moved on to his own food, eating quickly so he could get the boys to Axel's room. After shoveling his food down, Luke took all the trays and threw the left over food in the bin, handing the empty trays to the dish washing staff. He then walked back to his table, his eyes widening in alarm when he realized that Michael wasn't there. He rushed over to Axel, grabbing the young boys arm while frantically looking for the other patient. He was flooded with relief when he noticed a tuft of purple hair, and he started walking over to it. When he got there, the patient was speaking in fragmented sentences to Liam, who was almost staring through Michael, but still listening. Luke grabbed Michael's arm gently. 

"C'mon buddy. Time to go." Luke whispered softly, and Michael nodded quickly, before waving at Liam. Liam nodded as Michael walked away, and turned to his caretaker to be led back to his own room. Luke led Michael and Axel to Axel's room, handing Michael his notebook while sitting next to Axel.

"So, Axel. You had a very busy day. You talked to us! That's a lot of progress! Now we just need to get you to talk more. That'd be nice, wouldn't it? You'd be able to tell us what you want. What you need. If you're hungry, thirsty, or tired? Maybe we would be able to be" Luke was cut off with a broken, painful sounding voice. 

"Friend. We friend. Me tired." Luke looked at Axel in surprise, who was looking at his pajamas. When Axel realized Luke hadn't reacted, he looked at the worker. "Tired." The shocked worker nodded slightly, helping Axel change before gently laying him down. "Thank" Axel spoke quietly yet again, before closing his eyes and curling into a small ball, one of the few things that he was able to do alone. Luke turned to Michael, who was sketching something with a look of extreme determination covering his features. 

"Michael, it's time to go to your room. It's bed time." Michael shook his head vehemently at Luke's words, instead continuing to sketch. Luke sighed softly; this wasn't the first time that Michael had refused to go to bed at bedtime. "Mikey? Please?" The patient shook his head again, and the worker kneeled down to look eye to eye with Michael. Mikey immediately pulled the notebook to his chest, holding the side with the drawing to his torso with his arms wrapped tightly around it, as if he didn't want Luke seeing the picture. 

"Want to draw. Don't want sleep." Michael forced out, fighting off a yawn as he did. Luke laughed softly. 

"I know bub. But you'll be able to draw in the morning, okay? I promise you." Mikey met Luke's gaze for a second, almost as if debating whether to trust him. The young boy sighed, before closing his notebook and handing it over to the worker, before getting up slowly and lumbering out the other patient's room, moving instead down towards his room.

Before following, Luke opened up the notebook to see what Michael was drawing, what he wanted to keep from the worker. He took a soft inhale of breath as he saw the picture. While it wasn't finished yet, it was clear who it was. It was Luke himself. The only finished part thus far was Luke's hair and eyes, everything else just a faint outline. The blue eyed man was able to pick out small details, such as his lip ring, his eyes squinting and the outline of his nose scrunching up as if he was laughing. Even with only a pencil, Michael was able to make Luke's eyes shine and his face radiate with an aura of joy in the picture, and Luke had never seen himself the way Michael had drawn him. It was as if Michael had drawn an angel where there should only be a bug, and Luke couldn't be more touched that Michael saw him this way. The worker quickly slammed the notebook shut when he noticed Michael's footsteps coming back down the hall.

"Luke? Are you okay?" The patient asked, and Luke nodded, smiling fondly at the younger man. "I don't have key to my room. I need you to please open it," Michael stated, and Luke cleared his throat softly. 

"Yeah, of course. I'll be right there." Mikey walked away, back down to his room and Luke followed, exiting Axel's room and closing the door softly behind him, before trailing after Michael. When they reached Michael's room, they were met with Chase, already clocked in and ready to check on Mikey. 

"Oh, hey Michael. How're you tonight?" The night volunteer inquired, and Michael flashed him a thumbs up before slipping into his room to change. Chase snorted softly, before turning to Luke. "Harry's waiting for you, and I think he may be getting impatient. Hurry it up, blondie." As Luke walked away, he hit Chase softly in the shoulder, to which the shorter man snorted yet again. 

Luke then continued down to the small room that they had converted into an employee room of sorts. Luke went to his locker in the corner, pulling out his jacket, guitar and backpack, before clocking out. Harry was waiting outside the building, leaned up against the wall and tapping his foot impatiently. 

"There you are. What took so long?" The curly haired man asked as they started walking down the sidewalk towards Luke's apartment, and Luke shrugged softly. 

"I was looking at some things that Michael drew. They're really good pictures. Honestly, that boy is so talented, I don't know what to do about it. It frustrates me that he doesn't have one single goddamn flaw." Harry laughed softly, and Luke shoved him slightly. "I'm serious! There's almost nothing wrong with him, other than he's just a little bit stubborn." 

"A little?" Harry questioned, "I've heard you guys arguing about whether he has to go to bed or not. There's a difference between a little stubborn and stubborn as a donkey." Luke shook his head slightly. 

"You say that as if Louis isn't the most stubborn person in the world" 

"He is. But Michael is a close second." Luke laughed softly at this, and Harry smiled softly. Ever since regaining his flower, he had thought of Luke as a little brother, and protecting him is what Harry intended to do. If that meant shoving Luke at someone who very obviously liked him, then so be it. If that meant staying the night at Luke's house to help him write the perfect love song for Mikey, then so be it. Luke had done so much more than that for Harry. The least Harry could do was help him be happy. 

Luke walked up to his apartment building, stepping inside the heated hallways. Harry shifted uncomforably, and Luke snorted slightly.

"They either keep it too warm in the winter or too cold in the summer. Luckily, though, my apartment it a regular temperature. Always." He spoke quietly before walking up a flight of stairs to his second floor apartment. He stepped in, and Harry followed, before stopping in awe. The inside of Luke's apartment was painted a calming shade of blueish-gray, all of his appliances were either black or white. Harry walked over to Luke's couch, white leather with some navy blue pillows sitting on it, and sat down slowly. As he looked around, he noticed a picture of the worker with Dr. Irwin and Calum, right next to a picture of Luke surrounded by what seemed like his family. Luke looked quite a bit younger, possibly around eleven or twelve. He was surrounded by two older yet similar looking boys, who could be his brothers, as well as a woman and a man who seemed to be his mother and father. They were all beaming in pride at a small kitten that Luke was holding in his lap, and behind them there was a Christmas tree. Luke walked back into the room with his song writing notebook and a pencil, along with his guitar and two Arizona teas. This is when he noticed Harry staring at the picture. Harry immediately shifted his gaze away, and Luke sat down next to him.

"You remember about my family, don't you?" Harry nodded, and Luke continued on. "That was our last Christmas together. They got me a kitten, and I named him Billie Joe. Honestly, I was too obsessed with Green Day. It was pretty hard for Billie when he and I lived on the streets, but we made it work. I always split my food with him and he gave me something to live for. A reason to stick around, because if I wasn't going to take care of him, who was?" Harry looked down slightly, and Luke sighed softly. "I owe my life to him. He's my best friend. I'm gonna go get him," Harry smiled softly as Luke set down the items he was holding, before searching through his apartment. He came back just a few seconds later, holding a small Persian cat with blue eyes and white fur, black splotches littering his body. "He's about six years old now, but he didn't grow too much as a baby. Probably due to malnutrition. But it's okay, because he's healthy now, and I think he's happier now than he has been for such a long time." Luke set down the purring cat, who darted away, before sitting next to Harry. "So, that song." That's when Harry perked up slightly. 

"I was thinking about something about how you're trying to save him. About how you've got to get him out of this situation that he's in and at the same time how much you love helping him out. Maybe part of the chorus can be 'we've just gotta get out'," Harry spoke, and Luke immediately picked up after him. 

"We could add in things about how both of our worlds are falling apart. I've been through it, and he's obviously been through it. Things that we never thought could happen did. Like skyscrapers, falling apart." Harry immediately marked it down in the notebook, and they spent about another three hours writing a song out quickly, and another half hour of practicing through it together. Finally, they glanced at the time. 

"It's already 2:00. We should probably get to sleep. We have to be at work about five hours. Harry, you can sleep on the couch. I'll grab you some blankets." Luke walked down his hallway quickly, grabbing Harry a couple of blankets, laying them over him, before retiring to his room. Luke collapsed into his bed, before kicking off his pants. He was too tired to do much else, so he just turned over and drifted off to sleep, with his stuffed penguin yet again clutched to his chest.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wait and see

Harry woke up the next day to the smell of bacon and eggs cooking. He sat up, stretching slightly before walking into the kitchen. When he walked in, he was met with Luke, wearing nothing but the shirt he wore yesterday and a pair of boxers. Harry smiled slightly, watching Luke dance around the kitchen to a Green Day song, which was playing softly in the background.

"Having fun?" Harry spoke softly, and Luke did NOT jump a foot and a half, thank you very much. Luke whipped around to Harry, who was smiling softly. "You look like a dork"

"You better shut your mouth, unless you don't want breakfast" Luke answered as he dished out the eggs and bacon, before starting some toast. When they popped up, he turned to Harry. "Butter or jelly?" 

"Jelly, please." As Luke started spreading jelly on the toast, Harry laughed softly. "Do you always go all out for guests?" The blue eyed man shrugged slightly.

"I love cooking, but I usually don't have any one to cook for. I mean, it's kinda lonely, living by myself. I don't have many friends in the first place, so on the off chance that I do have company, I'm going to impress." Harry nodded slightly as Luke set his plate in front of Harry, along with a glass of orange juice, before sitting down at his own spot, digging in. Harry started eating slowly, watching the young man across from him. Harry knew what Luke had been through, and thinks that Luke is one of the strongest people he had ever met. While everybody else may have given up if they had gone what he had, he instead decided to go on and help people as much as he could. And while anybody else would've been more than happy to let the bitterness consume their every waking thought, Luke instead kept thinking positively. Luke looked up, and caught Harry staring at him. 

"Take a picture, it'll last longer" Luke quipped, and the older man scoffed slightly, pointing at his ring finger.

"In your dreams, Hemmings. I'm happily engaged." Luke made an over emphasized wink at Harry, who shook his head. "Save the flirting for Michael. Today. At work. With that song you and I wrote." 

"Speaking of, we've got an hour to get to work. It takes 45 minutes to get to work, so hurry it up with the eating." Luke got up, rinsing his empty plate off before downing the rest of his orange juice, setting the dishes in his dishwasher. Harry shoveled the rest of his food in his mouth, quickly following the younger man and setting his dish in the dishwasher next to where Luke had delicately placed his own. Harry pulled an extra shirt out of his bag, throwing it on while Luke changed into a button up shirt along with some skinny jeans. They both pulled on their shoes, Luke holding his bag and his guitar while Harry held only his bag. They walked out of the apartment, back into the extremely hot hallway, before Luke locked his door. 

"This doesn't even make sense, it's not even winter yet. It's still fall!" Harry muttered, and Luke shrugged.

"Two temperatures. Either colder than Draco's soul or hotter than me." Luke commented, and Harry was quick with his response. 

"Wouldn't that just be the same temperature?" He answered, and Luke hit his chest. 

"Shut up. I'm hot." 

"If you say so, gay boy." Harry answered as they stepped out of the apartment building, being met with the crisp autumn air. It was one of those days of the perfect temperature, not too cold, not too hot. Luke took a deep breath of the fresh air, before beginning the walk to work. While walking, a thousand and a half thoughts ran through his head. What if they misread it? What if Michael didn't really like him that way? What if he hated the song? Oh god, what if Luke forgot the chords? Harry noticed the younger boy was freaking out, and set a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Deep breaths, Lukey. It'll be great. I promise"

"And if it isn't?" the blue eyed man shot back.

"You can't expect the worst all the time" Harry answered, and Luke sighed softly, nodding just a bit. "Just live one moment at a time. If you get too far ahead of yourself you're gonna end up stressing over something you shouldn't be stressing about yet. Keep taking deep breaths and keep focusing on the task immediately ahead of you" Luke chewed on his lip, and Harry noticed the lip ring was gone. "When did you the lip ring out, huh?" Luke's lips twisted into a smile.

"I wanna be clean cut. I shaved too." Harry completely stopped walking, doubling over with laughter with his arms crossed over his stomach. Luke, blushing furiously, elbowed him before walking ahead. "It's not funny!"

"But it is!" Harry caught up to the younger man, still wheezing slightly with a large grin on his face. Luke snorted softly, speeding up a bit. After catching up again, Harry shook his head. 

When they got to work, Luke nodded at Chase as he was clocking out. Luke clocked in and set his things in his locker, before rushing to Michael's room, who was already awake and sketching away. While stepping in the room, he knocked on Michael's room gently, to which the patient looked up. 

"Morning Michael! How're you feeling this morning?" Luke asked quietly, and Michael attempted a smile. 

"I'm okay. And Luke?" Luke smiled softly, sitting next to Michael, who had gone back to drawing.

"I'm pretty good. Are you ready for breakfast?" While talking to the younger boy, Luke took a look at what he was drawing. Michael was currently working on a new piece, a small kitten sketched in his notebook that he was currently shading in and around, making the small pencil drawing leap out of the page at one. 

"A little bit hungry." Michael stated, and Luke scoffed.

"Then let's go wake up Axel, okay?" Mike nodded, and the worker helped him up. As they were walking through the halls, Michael continued sketching, running into multiple people. Luke took the notebook out of the patient's hands gently, shaking his head slowly. "You gotta watch where you're going, okay? When we get to breakfast you can keep drawing, okay?" 

"Okay, Luke." As they walked towards Axel's room, Michael looked around almost curiously, before tugging on Luke's sleeve. 

"Yes Michael?"

"Since when have hallways been green?" Luke smiled softly at the younger boy's slightly confused facial features. 

"Since two weeks after you came here" The corners of Michael's mouth twitched slightly, looking up at the walls. 

"I don't remember" 

"That's okay, it means you're getting better sweetheart" Mikey looked at Luke with his eyebrows pulled together.

"Sweetheart?" Luke's heart skipped a beat at the short but simple inquiry. Playing it cool, he shrugged slightly and glanced off to the side.

"I call all my friends that" Silence followed that statement, before being followed with one short word coming from the patient in response

"Oh," Michael responded, before continuing walking along the hallways in an awkward silence. Luckily, they got to Axel's room relatively quickly, and Luke walked in, sitting Michael down on the extra chair before waking Axel up with a small smile, speaking in a gentle voice.

"Mornin sleepy head. It's time for you to wake up." Helping the younger man sit up, Luke grabbed the meds for both of the patients, handing Michael a single capsule and allowing him to take it himself, before helping Axel take his. Axel tensed up, seemingly able to sense the tension between the other two boys, but not reacting to it otherwise. After the meds were taken, the trio continued on to the lunch room, with Michael babbling the entire way there. 

After taking care of Michael for a few months, Luke's noticed how social he truly is. He seemed to enjoy talking, even if no one seemed to be listening. The younger boy also seemed to enjoy meeting new people and it absolutely amazed Luke. Luke himself had never really had many friends, although he did hang around with mutual friends, and the few he truly had abandoned him after his family had lost their flowers.

 

The one that had hurt the most was Zayn, who left first. Luke had tried continually to keep the connection between them, the connection that had been between them since they were three, but the other boy absolutely refused to answer any attempt Luke made to talk to him. You see, Luke loved Zayn, and the other boy reciprocated the feelings. At least Luke thought he did. But when Luke needed Zayn most, he was left hanging. 

A few months after Luke had started selling himself, he was limping home from a late night at a client's when he quite literally ran into Zayn. Luke was knocked to the ground, wincing as he landed on the unforgiving pavement. The only thing he could hear around him were the laughs and taunts of the other kids that Luke used to call classmates, some of them were even what he considered as friends. And when he opened his eyes, Zayn was staring down at him, his eyes filled with a sort of mocking pity.

"Shut up, you guys," Zayn spoke up as his friends laughed and jeered at the cowering boy on the ground. "Leave the poor bastard alone. Lord knows he's already lost his dignity" As the big crowd moved along, Zayn stayed behind to help Luke up. The blond boy had been deeply hurt by Zayn's words, but still immediately responded to the older man's touch, leaning into it with a small smile, almost as if he thought he was safe again. When Luke went to hug his old friend, he was pushed away. He looked up at Zayn in shock as the other boy shook his head somberly. 

"They can't see me hugging you Lukey. They'll out me to everyone." 

"And what's wrong with that? I was out! People liked me!" Zayn shook his head, looking at the teary eyed boy in front of him. 

"Luke... They only liked you because you were friends with me. You saw how easily they dumped you after your family... Y'know..." This was when Luke's sorrow turned to rage. 

"You left! You promised you wouldn't and you fucking left me!" Zayn opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off by the other boy. "Shut up Zayn. You don't get to talk. Not until I'm finished. Your parents would've been more than happy to take me in. You know it as well as I do. They would've, had you just told them! I could've been living in a warm house with the boy that I love, the boy that's supposed to love me! And you just pushed me away. You left me when I needed you most, and you don't give two shits about me now. And you don't get it, Zayn. They treat me like I'm a fucking toy. My first time was supposed to be special, it was supposed to be with my soulmate, but instead it was some greasy old man just so that I could have money for food the next day. And half the time they don't even fucking pay up! There's nothing I can do about it. I can't call the police, I can't just take it from them, I can't fight them for it. Look at this!" Luke pulled his shirt up, new and old bruises alike littering his torso, starting from his ribs and disappearing below his belt line, but Zayn could imagine they continued on from there. Luke's stomach was severely shrunken in, the former pudge completely gone and replaced with what looked like a hollow bowl. Whether the weight loss was due to a lack of food or if it was on purpose, Zayn didn't know. The Arabic boy stared in shock at Luke, his mouth opening to say something before closing slowly. Luke pulled his shirt down, hugging it to his stomach tightly, almost as if he was trying to hide it from the world. Luke was shivering, his eyes filled with tears, before he started speaking quietly. "It wasn't supposed to be like this" 

"Lukey... you're selling yourself?" The younger boy nodded, obviously ashamed, and Zayn shoved his fists into his pockets. "I just, I can't see you doing it. I'm sorry. I wish I could fix it."

"You can, Zayn, just-"

"I can't do that, Lucas." Luke flinched at Zayn's harsh tone. "I'm not going back to what it was like in first grade. I'm not going back to being bullied and shoved around, and I'm not going back to it because of you. People like me now, Luke. I'm not going to lose that. I'm sorry." The younger boy looked at his old best friend with obvious shock, shaking his head slowly and backing away.

"I can't believe you." 

"I'm sorry Lu-" Zayn's apology was cut off with a shout from one of his friends, and he looked over Luke's shoulder before sighing softly. "I gotta go. Good luck, I guess." Luke watched the older boy walk around him, turning to face the same direction Zayn was walking, before whispering, just loud enough for the other boy to hear.

"I love you" Zayn paused, just for a split second, before continuing on his way, throwing behind the last words Luke would ever hear him say.

"I know."

Eventually the bruises faded, and with them, Luke's heartache. He started eating again, and his stomach regained that small bit of pudge before he started working out to get rid of it. Luke was now a healthy weight, his skin was smooth and his eyes had regained the spark in them. But he never again allowed himself to gain feelings for another man, never again allowed himself to grow as close with anyone as he did with Zayn, just in case. That is, until now. 

 

Luke snapped out of his reverie, smiling softly as Michael spoke about what he wanted to eat while they walked into the cafeteria, and Luke's eyes filled with fondness. The patient rushed ahead of Luke to get to the french toast that the kitchen staff had prepared for the institution, and Luke shook his head softly, following quickly with a small smile. As he and Axel got up to the serving area, Michael was talking to Ashley, Niall, and Liam, all three of them speaking in fragmented and jumbled sentences. Luke could only hear enough of their conversation to know they were talking about their favourite bands, and he was rather ecstatic about the fact that Michael was slowly but surely starting to remember his old opinions, and it was a sure sign that he was fairly close to being cured. Luke just hoped that the younger boy would get out today, and hopefully that would be because of Luke.

The worker got the attention of Michael, nodding towards their table and smiling softly as the younger boy waved goodbye to the small group, before walking along with Luke and Axel to their regular table. Luke sat between Harry and Axel, starting to feed Axel as Harry started talking. 

"Right after lunch, Lukey. You nervous?" Harry spoke softly, a small smile overtaking his features. Luke blushed slightly, shrugging softly.

"I guess. What if it doesn't work?"

"It'll work, bubs. I promise." Luke looked at his curly haired friend, nodding slightly. 

"Wait and see, Harold. Wait and see."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wish I had a good reason for not uploading for a long time but I'm just lazy. I put a lot of work into this one though, so I hope it's okay!

During breakfast, Michael watched his caretaker. A lot of confusing feelings and thoughts ran through his head every time he laid eyes on the man, or at least ghosts of feelings. His brain refused to acknowledge whatever he was feeling for the blond, but his chest knew there was something there. The way his heartrate picked up every time Luke laughed. The way he couldn't tear his eyes away from the bright blue eyes and smooth pale skin. The way Mike's fingers itched to run over the scars that littered Luke's arms. The way that Michael could feel something igniting in his chest, something that he hadn't felt since Robert. Of course, he hadn't felt much of anything since Rob had left him, but he knew this was special. But he couldn't express it. He didn't know how.

Luke turned to the younger boy after feeling his gaze on him for a while.   
"Is something wrong, Mike?" Michael shook his head in response, and Luke's eyebrows pulled together. "Do you want to go to the rec room? After breakfast?" As Michael nodded, Luke lit up with a grin. "I have a feeling today might be your last day in there"

"Why's that?" Mike inquired, and Luke shrugged.

"You've been getting so much better! I wouldn't be surprised if these next few days are your last here. I'm proud of you, Michael" Luke stated, and Michael felt his chest fill with a bright, warm feeling that seemed rather unfamiliar, despite Mike knowing he's felt it prior to this. He just couldn't tell what it was. He couldn't put a name to it.

After knowing Michael for a few months, Luke liked to think he knew  him. He knew the slight differences in Mike's facial expressions, the only way that Michael could express himself. Just in the slight changes in his eyebrows, the way his nose would shift or the way the corners of his mouth would point up or down. It wasn't voluntary, and Luke was sure Michael didn't even know he was doing it. However, it was enough of a shift that Luke could recognize it, and Luke knows the majority of Michael's facial expressions. But the way Michael had been looking at him recently, almost as if Michael was confused by him. Almost as if Michael was studying him. As if he was interested and terrified at the same time. It was a look that Luke couldn't pin down, as it kept shifting from facial expression to facial expression. It was the same expression that Mike was looking at him with during breakfast. As Luke walked Michael to the rec room, he mulled these things over in his mind, before sighing to himself. He'd figure it out sooner or later, whether he liked the results or not.

Once they got to the rec room, Michael immediately walked over to where Ashley, Liam, and Niall were playing a game of Band Hero. Michael sat down, mumbling a jumbled greeting before picking up the guitar, getting ready to add himself in as soon as the song ended. A minute or two after Luke walked away with Axel, the song ended and the other three turned to greet the newest member of their group.

"Michael, Liam is getting out soon." Ashely spoke softly, the smallest breath of sadness tinting her eyes. Liam smiled from beside her, and that's when Michael noticed the sparkle in his eyes.

"That's right! I got my first flower regrown this morning, when my parents came in with my nephew. He was just so excited to see me and the way that he grinned and lit up when he saw me? It just made me feel something. It was the thing I needed to come back." Liam answered, and Michael watched him speak. Liam had a way of speaking with his hands, a way that only came through now, now that he was rehabilitated. The lilac haired boy nodded just a bit, and Liam ran a hand through his hair. "I'm going to immediately get my hair cut, this is ridiculous" He laughed just a bit, and that was when Niall spoke up.

"What about us?" Ashley and Michael nodded a bit, in a way that signaled that they were thinking the same thing. Liam's laugh faded, and he shrugged just a bit.   
"Well, Dr. Irwin isn't letting me out until tomorrow, but after lunch I've got a long ass therapy session. I'm planning on asking him to message me when you guys get out. So we can still talk, you know? Maybe start up a real band? We're not too far in age so it wouldn't be weird, you know?" Liam answered, and Michael nodded just a bit. Liam smiled softly at the group, before nodding at the game. "Shall we play?" Ashley watched him with lingering eyes for just a second, before nodding and pressing play on the next game.

Michael got to pick the song, and he immediately went for his favourite on the game, "Dirty Little Secret" by All American Rejects. The entire group rolled their eyes as the opening chords started up, despite having known that would be the song he'd go for, but played along. None of them were truly annoyed, but they could pretend while the group was still together. After all, they were the first people that Michael felt he could consider friends, other than Luke.

They continued playing through an extensive playlist that Liam had made on the game, a play list that included all of their favourite songs, and by the time they got through, it was lunch time. Dr. Irwin waved at Liam from the door, who smiled a bit at the others before getting up and stretching just a bit. He smiled at the group, before saluting them.

"I'll see you guys on the other side." He spoke, before walking out with Dr. Irwin. With that, Luke appeared and motioned for Michael. Michael got up, waving goodbye to his small group of friends, before walking out with him.

"So I'm assuming you heard about Liam, right?" Michael nodded a bit, and the corners of his mouth twitched down just a bit. Luke smiled softly. "It's okay, you'll be out of here soon. I promise."

"What about Ashley? What bout Niall?" Michael asked, looking up at the taller man.

"Well, I think they're going to get out about two or three weeks after you guys. They're making a lot of progress, but they came here pretty bad. Dr. Irwin has you projected to get out within the next week or less." Michael nodded a bit, before walking into the cafeteria. Luke followed, with Axel already inside the cafeteria eating his grilled cheese. Michael went up to grab his trey, before walking to his table and plopping down at it. Luke sat next to him, as Michael dug into his food. Harry raised his eyebrows at Luke, and Luke shook his head. Michael looked up at Harry, before looking over at Luke.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, before Luke shook his head.

"Harry's just being silly." Harry laughed a bit, and Luke shook his head. "Just eat lunch, okay?" Michael looked back to his sandwich, continuing to eat it, as Harry continued chuckling to himself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hoo boy

Lunch went by almost too quickly for Luke's comfort, and before he knew it Harry was leading Axel away for their joint therapy session. Michael finished eating long before lunch was over, so Luke had to stretch out his grilled cheese sandwich as long as he possibly could. Of course, there's only a certain amount of time you can nibble at your sandwich before it's gone, so he eventually had to get up and lead Michael out of the cafeteria.

While they walked from the café, Luke took in just how much the younger boy had changed from his first time in. Michael walked without having to be helped, and his mouth was always tilted one way or another. His blonde roots were grown out, and the lilac color he had come in with was fading. Michael's eyes were still as dull as they were when he came in, but they seemed to be less weighted down. The bags under them seemed smaller. Michael's shoulders were pulled back rather than slumped over, like he was carrying the weight of the sky. His eyebrows went from always furrowed to a resting state, and his head was held just a little higher. Luke took in all these details as much as he could, because if this song didn't work, he feared Michael would hated him for life. 

Luke had also talked to Calum about his feelings for Michael, and Calum seemed to approve. However, the worker made it very clear that if Michael spurred Luke's advancements, Luke would have to back off immediately. He reminded the blue eyed boy that Michael's health and well being came over Luke's romantic feelings, and that if Luke couldn't handle it then he could feel free to turn Michael over to another volunteer. Luke wasn't planning on continuing his advancements if Michael didn't like him back, of course, but he understood Calum's worry. Obviously, Luke hoped that wasn't the case, but he had been through so much, he figured he was due for quite a bit of compensation. While the universe had given him a job, two parent figures, and a house, it had taken his real family, all of his friends, the boy he loved, and his confidence. And honestly, he thought he deserved quite a bit more back. The blonde kept a steady pace, all while mulling this over in his mind. Harry's words also came back to him, the reassurance that Michael liked Luke. It was Michael's free time, and they usually spent it in the patient's room, Michael either drawing or playing his guitar while Luke filled out his daily paperwork. However, today Luke led to Michael to a therapy room instead, Luke's guitar already sitting in the corner. Michael noticed it almost immediately.

"Ooooh, do you have a new song?" Michael asked, and Luke nodded a bit, struggling to swallow around the lump in his throat. Michael tilted his head just a bit. "Why aren't we waiting for Axel?" Luke attempted to answer, but the butterflies in his belly caused a bit of a blockage in his throat. He took a deep breath before clearing his throat and trying again.

"It's a very special song. I just wanted you to hear it first." Michael nodded, sitting down on one of the chairs arranged in a half circle around the chair that the volunteer normally sits in. Luke walked over to his guitar, checking his tuning before sitting down across from Michael. It was at this point that he noticed that his nerves caused him to forget where he put his pick. He got up, looking around for it almost frantically, before Michael spoke up quietly.

"Luke," Luke looked over at him, "It's in your back pocket. You put it in there when you took your guitar out."

Luke reached into his back pocket, and sure enough, his pick was there. He laughed nervously, thanking the younger boy softly, before sitting down on the couch again, pulling the guitar back to him. Luke closed his eyes, took yet another deep breath, before launching into the opening chords of the song. His voice caught in his throat as he sang the intro, but soon enough Luke's melodic voice filled the room. Michael watched him intently, not moving other than blinking. It was when Luke got to the second chorus that he could finally bring himself to look up at Michael.

"And if the earth ends up crumbling down to it's knees, then baby, we just gotta get out, we just gotta get out," Michael's eyes widened as Luke's baby blues met his. The only thing he could think of was how well the lyrics related to his current situation. "If these skyscrapers tumble down and crash around, baby, we just gotta get out, we just gotta get out," That was when it hit him. Luke had written this song about him. As Luke started the bridge, Michael could feel a small smile tugging on his lips. "And if we fall, it's not your fault. Shadows covering our selfish foes. And as our love, goes out on a high note," Michael looked down at his lap, pressing his fingers to the middle of his chest gently. And he felt a warm feeling washing over him. A feeling that he hadn't felt in ages, but he couldn't put a name to it.

Michael listened to the ending of the song, staring at his lap, and when Luke finished it off, Michael remained silent. Instead of his usual reaction of applause, he sat there, his fingers on his chest and his eyes locked on his lap. Luke watched the younger boy nervously.

"Michael...?" Luke spoke almost hesitantly, nervous due to the patient's lack of reaction. Michael looked up, making eye contact with Luke, before his face went slack. His shoulders drooped and his eyes went out of focus. Michael could feel an overwhelming wave of the warm feeling yet again, filling him up from his toenails to the tip of the highest pointing spike of hair. And suddenly, a rush of names for the emotion came to him. 

Happiness. Comfort. Safety. Confidence. Humility. 

The patients eyes focused on Luke.

Love. 

Michael's face lit up with a grin, launching himself across the room and tackling Luke in a bear hug. Luke, rather shocked at the sudden movement from the previously lifeless boy, took a second, before laughing quietly and wrapping his arms around Michael's torso. Michael clung to the volunteers shirt tightly, refusing to move for quite a while, and Luke sat there, rubbing the patient's back gently.

When Michael finally pulled away, he was still smiling wildly, but Luke could see tears in his eyes.

"That song was about me," Michael stated, not even needing to ask. Luke nodded in affirmation anyway, and Michael wiped his eyes with his sleeves. "Am I that friend?" Luke snorted in laughter, and Michael's grin grew impossibly bigger.

Slowly, Luke reached for Michael's hand, turning it over and looking at his thumb, where a freckle had reappeared. Luke looked up at the smaller boy.

"Welcome back, Mike."


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> holy heck it took me a long time to write this. I wasn't really sure where to go from the last chapter but I figured it out yesterday

The two boys ended up racing each other down the hallway, both of them dodging around delighted looking volunteers and slightly startled patients. Luke reached Dr. Irwin's door first, and flung open the door. Both Dr. Irwin and Liam jumped slightly, obviously shocked to see the blond haired boy panting in the door frame. Dr. Irwin's eyebrows furrowed in worry as he sprung up and walked to the door.

"Luke? Has something happened?" Dr. Irwin put his hand gently on Luke's back, who was folded over and panting for breath. Luke pointed off in the general direction he had come from, where Michael was running along, quite a bit behind. Dr. Irwin quickly put two and two together, his eyebrows jumping up and his face beaming with joy. "Michael's back!" Hearing this, Liam popped his head out of the office, before running down the hall and embracing his former fellow patient in a tight hug. They both sank to their knees on the floor, happy to be released from the prison their minds had trapped themselves in, relieved to be out together. 

"Now we can really start that band together!" Liam quipped, and Michael's laughter filled the air. It was the first time Luke had heard the young man laugh, and it was like hearing an angel laugh. If Luke could put it on a recording and play it over and over again, he honestly would, and he wasn't ashamed to admit it. He knew he had fallen far too fast for Michael to keep up, especially after months of not being able to feel. Luke tuned back in as Dr. Irwin was talking. 

"We'll have to call your mom, of course, and keep you another full 24 hours for observation, but if all goes well, you should be out by 8pm tomorrow. We'll be able to take you off of Xenoren in exactly a week, but the chances of relapsing won't disappear for a month." Michael's eyebrows were furrowed as he nodded along, obviously barely listening. Ashton noticed it, and smiled just a little bit. "Something on your mind?"

"Can I call my mom right now?" the question burst out of his mouth, as if he couldn't say it quick enough. Ashton laughed softly, and nodded just a bit. 

"Of course. Luke can bring you to the phones, okay?" Michael started bouncing on his toes, before grabbing Luke's hand and dragging him out of the office. 

"Which way do we go?" The former patient questioned, and Luke laughed slightly, walking in the direction of the lobby, where the phones were. Michael kept a tight grip on Luke's hand as they stepped into the now green room, smiling at the secretary and basically dragging Luke to the phones. Michael picked up the phone, dialing the only number he knew by heart, and held his breath as the phone rang. Luke leaned against the wall, watching as Michael smiled just a bit when the phone was picked up. 

"Hello, this is Karen Clifford." came the familiar voice from the other end of the line. Michael froze up, looking over at Luke, who gave him a thumbs up. "Hello? Is anyone there?" Michael was struggling to hold back tears, and barely able to talk, but he managed to force a single word out. 

"Mommy?" 

Karen gasped loudly enough for Luke to hear, and burst into sobs from her side of the phone. "Michael? Mikey is that you?" Michael made a noise of confirmation, crying into the handset. "You're okay! I thought you'd never come back I'm so- I'm on my way, okay baby? I'm on my way. I love you, okay sweetheart? I'll be there in ten minutes, no later." Michael made the same noise again, nodding, and collapsed to his knees as his mom hung up. Luke smiled just a bit, dropping next to Michael and wrapping him up in a hug. Michael clung onto Luke's shirt, shaking with sobs. Luke slowly helped him to his feet. “I wanna wait here. I wanna wait here for mommy she’s on her way.” Luke nodded at Michael’s pleas, walking over to the chairs and sitting him down softly. 

“Sam Smith came out with a new album while you were in there. We can listen to it if you’d like!” Michael nodded softly, smiling to himself. Luke fished his phone out of his pockets and scrolled through his music library, before pressing shuffle on "The Thrill of It All". The first song to play was Midnight Train, and Luke leaned back, his eyes shutting as he listened to the soft crooning of Sam Smith’s voice. Michael kept his eyes locked on the door that he was waiting for his mom to come through, half listening to the music playing in the background. Karen came running in almost exactly five minutes later, throwing the door open and stopping, looking around frantically. She stopped when she saw her son, and walked over, pulling him into a tight hug. 

“Michael, Mikey, I missed you so much.” 

“I missed you too mommy.” She rubbed his back, holding him tightly. Karen pulled away just enough to grab Luke’s hand and pull him into the hug as well. She held the two boys close for a while, before pulling away and looking up at Luke with tears in her eyes. 

“Thank you. Thank you so much for bringing my boy back, thank you. You’re an angel.” Before Luke could reply, Michael jumped into the conversation. 

“Luke wrote me some songs! They’re very pretty and you should listen to them sometime!”

“I will someday, I promise. For now, Dr. Irwin called when I was on my way. He said Luke could lead us to his therapy room.” Luke nodded, walking down the hallway that would lead to Dr. Irwin’s office, with the mother and son following closely behind with their hands intertwined. When they walked into the office, Calum was sitting across from Dr. Irwin, obviously deep in conversation. When he heard them come in, Calum leaped out of his seat, and pulled it out for Karen instead. She sat down with a quiet thanks, and Michael rushed to take the seat next to her and the final seat in the room. Calum leaned on Dr. Irwin’s chair while Luke leaned up against the wall, watching the room in front of him. Dr. Irwin smiled at the mother and the son. 

“Welcome welcome! I’m glad Michael’s back. We’re here for a quick rundown of Michael’s recovery, as well as the recovery process for the next few weeks to come. Luke was Michael’s primary day care taker, and has Chase’s notes, who was the evening care taker. H’ell tell you what’s happened in these few weeks” Dr. Irwin nodded at Luke, who cleared his throat a bit while opening Michael’s file. 

 

“As we all know, Michael came here an empty shell of a man. He was non responsive, there was no light in his eyes, and he basically stared through people. However, through some hard work, he started talking in fragmented sentences in just a few weeks, and even regained his interest in guitar. A few days after that, Chase walked in on him playing guitar. Rather than immediately stopping, like he usually would at that point, he instead kept playing. When he was done, he said goodnight to Chase and went to bed. Just a week later, we introduced him to the rec room, where he met Ashley, Liam, and Niall. After meeting them and playing Guitar Hero with them, his health improved exponentially. In fact, Liam recovered earlier today. As we can see now, Michael’s recovered and seems happy to be back.” Luke closed his file, tossing the file onto Dr. Irwin’s desk. At this point, Calum cleared his throat. 

“Ma’am, there’s something we do need to let you know, for liability reasons. Do you know about your son’s… are you aware… do you know-” 

“I know Michael’s gay. He told me about six months ago, out of the middle of nowhere. He just came up to me and said ‘knock knock’. In common response, I asked who’s there. He simply replied with ‘I’m gay’ before basically running back to his room. I walked in, and he was crying. Because he was scared that I’d hate him. I don’t see why he’d ever think that, but I calmed him down and we ended up having an old movie marathon while eating chocolate ice cream. Why do you ask?” Calum and Dr. Irwin glanced at each other, nodding a bit, before Calum answered again. 

“We need to tell you for liability reasons that it seems as though Michael’s developed a sort of relationship with a member of the staff. Nothing inappropriate has gone down, and it was made clear that if anything happened detrimental to Michael’s health, he’d be moved to the opposite wing and cut off from that staff member. We just wanted to let you know so you wouldn’t find out later and get upset or angry about it.” Karen smiled softly, turning to her son. 

“Is he nice to you?” Michael nodded quickly, and Karen grabbed his hand gently. “Then you can continue seeing Luke, it’s okay with me.” Michael’s eyebrows jumped up, and as he opened his mouth to question it, Karen cut him off. “Call it mother’s intuition. It was in the way you looked at him. Luke’s only a year older than you, and you say he’s nice. So I trust him.” She turned to look at Luke. “Speaking of, you know that Michael’s coming home tomorrow. I’d like to invite you to dinner. We’d need a day to clean the house, so does Thursday at seven work? I know there’s likely nothing official yet, but I’d love to get to know the man who brought my baby back to me.” Luke smiled and nodded.

“I’d love to. It’d be an honor.” He replied, and Karen smiled. Dr. Irwin broke into the conversation. 

“Remember that Michael comes home tomorrow at 8, and he’ll be off of Xenoren in a week. It’s time for him to go to bed, however, so we’ll see you tomorrow at eight.” Karen nodded again, before hugging her son and pressing a soft kiss to his head. She then nodded at Luke, before walking out. Luke got up to bring Michael to his room, but was stopped by Ashton. “Calum can bring Michael to his room, I’d like to talk to you.” Luke sank down to his chair, watching Calum walk out of the room with Michael beside him. “I’d like to talk to you about a promotion. Right now, you’re basically head of volunteers, but I’d like to make a new branch that you’d be in charge of. It’s a music branch. All you’d need to do would be to come in twice a week and play for the less responsive therapy groups, and teach the more responsive therapy groups that choose to learn guitar. On those days, we’d like you to come in for therapy after lunch and stay through dinner to sit down and talk to the patients. If you accept, Harry will get your current position. You’d get the same pay. Are you willing to do this?” Luke’s face broke into a huge grin, before he reached over and gave a hug to Dr. Irwin. 

“Of course. This is basically a dream come true.” Ashton held him closely, rubbing Luke’s back. 

“Now go home. You’ve got a long day tomorrow. You should get some rest.” Luke nodded, and walked out to make his way home. 

 

The next day flew by before Luke’s eyes, and directly after lunch, he found himself helping Liam pack up. Liam sighed softly while packing, and Luke turned to him. 

“Is something wrong?” he asked, and Liam shrugged a bit. 

“I’m glad Karen will allow Michael and I to continue contact, but I’ll miss seeing Ashley and Niall every week. Dr. Irwin said he’d leave Michael and I’s numbers in their files, but I’ll still miss them.”

“You can still see them on visiting days” Luke pointed out, and Liam shrugged. 

“I dunno. It’s not the same. We’ll be talking and eating, not playing our instruments.” Liam shrugged a bit, looking down “And that’s only once a month.” 

“They’ll be out soon. And then you four can make that band. Have you thought of a name?” Liam laughed slightly and shook his head. 

“No, not quite. I’m sure MIchael and I will throw around some ideas later.” Liam stood up, stretching a bit as he picked up his bags, before smiling at Luke. “Thanks for the help. I guess I’ll see you around, yeah?” Luke nodded, waving as Liam walked out, before walking to the therapy room that Michael’s currently in, drawing a small picture. Luke plopped down next to him, nudging his knee against Michael’s. 

“What’re you drawing there?” Michael answered without looking up. 

“Lilacs”

“Your favourite flower.” Michael looked up at Luke, smiling wildly. 

“I get to go home today! I get to go back to school!” Michael stopped for a second, laughing to himself. “I never thought I’d be excited to go to school.” Luke laughed just a bit, ruffling his hair just a little bit. 

“I’m glad you’re getting out of here. It’d be great to see what you’re like when you’re not here.” Michael shrugged a bit. 

“I don’t have many friends, so it’s mainly drawing and playing guitar”

“I’d love to listen to you sing. I’ve never heard you sing.” Michael shrugged a little bit, looking off to the side with a small smile. “C’mon. I know you have Ed Sheeran’s entire discography memorized. I’m sure you’d sound great singing it.” Michael shrugged again. 

“Maybe someday,” Michael mumbled. 

“Maybe someday.” Luke repeated. 

 

Just a few hours later, Michael and Luke were packing up Michael’s room, with All Time Low playing in the background. Michael looked around slowly. 

“I’m kinda gonna miss this place.” Luke glanced at the younger boy, who shrugged a bit. “It’s a little weird, but I liked the people here. I liked the routine.” 

“I understand, but you’ll be at home with your mom. Besides, with you out of here, I’d be able to take you on a date or two.” Michael looked up at him with a small blush, and Luke nudged him with his elbow. “C’mon. I don’t stay up late writing songs for just anybody. Of course I plan on taking you out.” 

“It would be my honor.” Michael responded, curtsying just slightly, and Luke laughed softly as Karen walked in through the door. She smiled at Luke softly, before picking up some of Michael’s bags. 

“Are you ready, sweetie?” Michael nodded, before walking out. Luke picked up a final bag and walked them out to their car, helping them pack up the car. He watched as they got into the car, pulling out of the parking spot. Just before the car was about to drive away it stopped, and Michael popped out, running over to Luke and pressing a soft kiss to Luke’s cheek. 

“I’ll see you on Thursday.” Michael promised, before running back to the car. Luke’s fingers found his own cheek, pressing the spot where Michael had kissed just a second ago, before waving with his other hand as the mother and son drove away. 

“See you Thursday”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wow I took some time off and I finally sat down to write! Honestly, other than the scene with Zayn, this is probably my favorite part I've written to date. I hope you guys enjoy it!
> 
> Also not to be needy but I do like comments feel free to comment once or twice or twenty times

It was Thursday, 6:53 pm, and Luke was pacing around his apartment with a white, fluffy towel wrapped around his waist. He was staring into his closet full of the clothes that usually seem to work for him, but today looked like they were picked out by a toddler. He ran a hand through his hair, before swearing softly under his breath, realizing that he had yet to do his hair. He checked the time, and noticed that Harry would likely have just dropped off his patients at group therapy. How convenient for him. Luke unlocked his phone, went to his favourites list, and clicked Harry's icon. He waited for a solid two seconds before Harry picked up, sighing into the phone. 

"I thought I had gotten rid of you except for two times a week" Harry teased, and Luke snorted softly.

"Sorry to disappoint, soon-to-be-Tomlinson, but I'm a fucking mess"

"You just noticed this?" Luke groaned softly, and Harry spoke softly into the phone. "I'm sorry, I didn't think you were serious. What's up, how can I help?" 

"You dress a lot better than me and I need help" 

"Oh, your date with Michael?"

"It's not a date" Luke muttered to himself, and Harry, despite hearing it, continued talking.

"You could wear a cute little dress. Show a little skin" Harry laughed to himself softly, imagining the sight. 

"First off, shut the fuck up, I'd look great in a dress. Second off, I seriously need help. Please." Luke lied back on the bed, and Harry hummed on the other side of the line. 

"What about... You look really good in that gray shirt! And of course, your legs look really good in those black jeans you own, no homo." Harry chuckled to himself, before continuing. "Also, I like that red flannel with that shirt, so you can throw that on. If it gets too hot, you can tie it around the waist and rock the dad look, ya know? And of course, combat boots are a necessity. You're still emo on the inside, so don't mislead him." Luke rolled his eyes at that, but as he put the outfit on his bed to see how it would work, realized that Harry Styles might just be a genius. It looked casual, like he had put effort into it but hadn't spent a half hour staring into his closet. 

"It looks great Harry, now I know why your last name is Styles!" Luke quipped and Harry scoffed a bit.

"Because I was born into a family with the last name of Styles?" 

"Thanks, bye!" Without waiting for a response, Luke hung up on the other man, before dropping the towel and pulling on his clothes as fast as he could. He rushed to his bathroom, putting on his deodorant and cologne, before pulling out his toothbrush and brushing his teeth as well as he could. He probably brushed for a solid five minutes, before realizing that he had definitely reached every place, and continued brushing for an extra minute just to be sure. After rinsing out his mouth, he looked into the mirror and smiled to himself, making sure that he didn't have some broccoli in his teeth, before remembering that he hadn't eaten broccoli since two months ago. He got out his hair dryer and styling cream, ready to style his hair, before noticing the time on his phone. It was exactly 7:30, and he was expected at the Clifford house in 30 minutes. It took him an average of 25 minutes to style his hair. Luke sighed at the flat flop on top of his head, and ran his fingers through it a bit before deciding it looked good enough, and walked to his living room. Billie Joe walked up to him, purring softly, and Luke swooped down to pet him gently.

"I'm gonna be out late tonight, okay? I've got a date" Billie Joe continued purring, nudging his head against the palm of Luke's hand. "I know, right? I haven't been on a proper date in forever. That's assuming that the movies I went to with Zayn were we just awkwardly held hands were dates." He snorted to himself. "Teenagers, am I right?" He gave a final scratch under Billie's chin, before getting up and stretching a bit. "I'll be back later, all right? I filled your bowl, so you'll have dinner whenever you're ready for it. I love you" As he walked out of his apartment into the too-warm-hallway, he locked his door and muttered softly to himself. "God, I act like Billie's my child. I mean, he might as well be." Luke shoved his hands in his pockets, walking to the parking garage. Yes, he had a car, a pretty decent one at that. He just preferred walking over driving. However, something about attempting to walk across town in a half hour didn't seem possible. Unless he sprinted, and showing up sweaty wasn't high on his "Nice Evening" list. So, he got into his car and connected his phone to his radio, pressing shuffle in his music library and pulled out of one of his two assigned parking spots, and drove off into the night. 

As he drove, he glanced anxiously at the clock. Africa came on, pumping through his speakers, and Luke turned up the radio. Not many people liked songs by Toto that weren't Africa, and while Luke liked their albums, he wasn't ashamed to admit Africa would always have a special place in his heart. He turned up the radio, just loud enough for the music's calming sounds to roll over him, before taking a deep breath and driving on. As the song continued, he slowly but surely felt the tension he was holding in his shoulders leave, and he finally felt relaxed. Music had always had that effect on Luke, from a very young age. It was part of the reason why he picked up the guitar, in hopes that he could someday make other people feel the same things he felt every time the music started. He turned onto Michael’s street right as the song ended, and as such he turned down the radio. You know, so he could see better. That’s how sight works, right? He squinted at the houses as addresses passed by, before finally spotting the one that had been texted to him earlier that day. He pulled into the driveway, taking one last deep breath before turning off his car and getting out. He checked his mirror one last time, sighing at his flat hair, before shrugging his shoulders and walking up to the door. Luke barely had time to ring the doorbell before it was flung open by an ecstatic looking Michael. 

Luke had to take a step back and look over Michael, who had changed dramatically since the week before, the last time Luke had seen it. He had finally gotten his haircut and redyed to a shade of lilac that matched his light purple sweater almost perfectly. Michael’s hair now fell just under his eyebrows, and the younger boy ran a hand through his hair, his blue-green eyes gazing up at Luke. 

“Hey! I like what you did with your hair!” Michael spoke, and Luke snorted softly.

“To be honest, I didn’t have time to style it. But I was gonna say the same to you” Michael blushed a bit, shrugging softly. 

“I just cleaned it up a bit. But I like your hair like this. It suits you!” Michael sat at the step for a second, smiling up at Luke, apparently oblivious to the awkward silence that followed. Luke spoke in a stage whisper. 

“Hey, I’m kind of a vampire, I have to be invited in” Michael jumped a bit, his eyes widening, before cocking his head a bit. 

“Really? I thought you were just gonna eat on the porch step.” Luke looked at him, the confusion in his eyes obvious, before Michael broke out in giggles. “I’m joking. You can come in, but please take off your shoes.” Michael stepped to the side, and Luke stepped into the house, immediately being greeted by the smell of lasagna and garlic bread. In Luke’s perfect world, it’s the only smell that would exist. He took off his shoes and motioned politely for Michael to lead the way. Mikey led the older boy into the kitchen, where his mother was just taking out the lasagna. 

“Luke! Right on time! I love what you did with your hair!” Luke smiled at the lady, holding out his hand to shake hers, but was instead pulled into a hug. “Oh c’mon, we’re a hugging family.” Luke smiled to himself, wrapping his arms back around her and patting her back. She pulled away quickly, placing her hand on the middle of his back. “C’mon hon, sit down.” She sat him down at a table spot, and patted his back, before starting back to the kitchen. 

“Thank you, Mrs. Clifford.” 

“Oh, don’t mention it. And, you can call me Karen. No need being formal.” Luke smiled softly, looking down at his lap as Michael plopped down next to him. When he did, Luke looked at him, opening his mouth to speak but pausing, squinting a bit. 

“Are you wearing mascara?” Michael’s eyes widened, his hands flying up to cover his face. 

“Is that bad, do you not like it?” Luke’s eyes filled with alarm, before gently putting his hand on Michael’s shoulder. 

“Of course I like it. It looks really good! I just wanted to make sure that I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. It really brings out your eyes!”

“That’s kind of the point!” Michael brought his head out of his hands, smiling up at Luke, before perking up. “Wanna see my makeup collection?” Luke smiled softly, nodding. While Luke himself hadn’t the slightest idea what he was looking at when he was in a makeup store, Michael seemed excited. It was always worth it to listen to someone talk about their interests. Mikey got to his feet, grabbing Luke’s wrist and pulling him up the stairs and into his room. 

Luke stopped, looking around the room, which screamed Michael from every corner. The walls were painted red, and Michael’s guitar was right next to his bed, which was pushed into the corner. A desk was pushed into another corner and his closet was built into the wall near his desk. Michael had two dressers, one of which was part vanity with theater grade makeup lights on it, and the other one had a radio and a bunch of CDs on it. There were posters hung up on Michael’s walls and fairy lights hanging from his ceiling. Despite the obvious softness, there was an energy in the room, not one that made Luke feel off put, but rather happy and excited. 

Michael grabbed a remote, turning on the fairy lights, before tossing the remote onto his bed. He walked over to his vanity, motioning Luke over, before opening two of the drawers and pulling out his makeup bags. He opened them up, and Luke was shocked to see so much makeup meticulously organized. Michael started pulling them out naming off the products, and Luke leaned up against the wall, watching him fondly.

“That’s all my primer and concealer, but this is my foundation. It’s exactly what it sounds like! It sets a foundation for the rest of your makeup! And this is all my eyeshadow, but I only really wear it when I’m going to a party or somewhere fancy. I also have eyeliner, which I’m not too good at yet, but I’m working on it! This is my favourite mascara, it makes my eyelashes look darker and like three times as long! It makes me look super pretty! And I really really like this highlight! It really makes my cheekbones look good! I used to contour but I kinda sucked at it so I just use a bunch of highlight. And of course, my lipsticks and lipglosses. I don’t wear them very often, cause they make my lips feel sticky, you know?” He looked up at Luke expectantly, who was quite honestly still trying to figure out what contour was. Luke smiled though, nodding a bit. Michael’s eyes were lit up, and a wide smile was covering his face. “I don’t usually wear it in public, but I like practicing it.” Michael took a deep breath, pausing just long enough for his mother’s voice to waft up the stairs. 

“Boys! Dinner’s ready!” Michael got up and quickly put all of his makeup away, before motioning for Luke to follow him. The smaller boy led the way down the stairs, greeting his mom. “What were you guys doing upstairs?”

“I was showing Luke my makeup collection!” Karen smiled, handing the boys their servings of lasagna, before going to the kitchen to grab garlic bread and waters. She finally sat down at the table, and Luke finally picked up his fork to eat. 

“Oh my goodness… Mrs- Karen, this is amazing!” She smiled softly at her guest. 

“I’m glad you think so”

“It’s my mom’s own recipe! She makes it from scratch!” Michael bragged, and Luke’s eyes widened with surprise. “Do you cook at all?”

“Yeah, sometimes. But mainly I just order takeout or delivery. I love home cooked meals though. They always taste so personal. Like the cook put their heart and soul into it.” Luke replied. Karen nodded a bit. 

“That’s true. If someone takes the time to make something from scratch, then they must care about what they’re making or who they’re making it for” She reached across the table, pinching Michael’s cheek. “For me it’s a bit of both” Michael’s face turned red and he pulled away from his mom’s hand with a small sound of protest.

“Mooooom” he groaned. Luke laughed at the childish act, and they continued their meal with light hearted banter. 

 

After everyone had had their fill, Luke attempted to help Karen do the dishes, but she swatted him away, claiming that he was her guest and shouldn’t be doing any work. Luke shrugged, walking into the living room and looking out the window. He looked up at the sky, and noticed it was unusually clear. An idea came to mind, and he spun on his heel to go to the kitchen again. 

“Luke, I will force you to sit down if you don’t stop being so dang helpful.” Karen threatened, and Luke laughed softly. 

“Actually, I was hoping I could take Michael out. I know it’s a bit late, and it’s a school night, but… please?” Karen looked at Luke in surprise, before glancing over at Michael, who was quite obviously trying to look like he wasn’t listening. She hummed softly, before nodding at Luke. 

“I suppose so. I want him home by 12:30 at the absolute latest, you hear?” Luke grinned at Michael’s mother. 

“12:30. I promise.”


	10. Chapter 10

As soon as he got the okay from Michael’s mom, Luke grabbed the younger boy’s hand, before tugging him outside and to Luke’s car. Luke walked to the passenger’s side of his car, opening the passenger door for Michael before motioning him into the seat. Michael lit up with a grin.

“Why thank you, kind sir,” Michael curtsied jokingly, before jumping into the passenger’s seat. Luke snorted softly, leaning down and pressing a gentle kiss to Michael’s head. He walked to the opposite side of the car, sitting down and starting the car, before tossing his phone to Michael. 

“Feel free to pick a song. My phone’s already hooked up to the radio, so have at it.” Michael smiled softly, looking up at Luke before opening Luke’s phone. He scrolled through Luke’s library for a couple of minutes, before tapping on Arctic Monkeys. Michael hit shuffle on their discography, before laying his head back with his eyes sliding shut, a small smile overtaking his face as Fluorescent Adolescent played over the speakers. 

“So where are we going anyway?” Michael asked as Luke turned onto the interstate. Michael opened his eyes, glancing out the window to see the lights of the city fade behind them. “Are you gonna like, murder me?” Luke chuckled softly, shaking his head. 

“Of course I am, but first we’re going out to this old barn I used to go to as a kid.” Luke smiled nostalgically, and glanced over at Michael. “My old… friend’s family used to own the barn. We’d go out together on the weekends and run around the barn while they taught lessons. He and I would play with the barn cats, run around with the dogs, and feed the horses. And sometimes we even got to ride them.” Luke trailed off for a second, before taking a deep breath. “Anyway, it’s got a great view of the stars at night, and I like stars almost as much as I like music. So, I don’t see why I shouldn’t share it with you.” Michael straightened up, looking over at Luke, before reaching across the council to grab Luke’s hand. He pressed a gentle kiss to Luke’s knuckles, before looking out the window again, their hands resting on the council. After a couple more songs listened to in silence, Luke turned onto a gravel road. Michael’s eyes snapped open, feeling the car bump and rattle under him. He looked out the window, looking around in an attempt to find the barn. Luke pulled to the side, turning off the car, before getting out and stretching softly. Luke motioned softly for Michael to get out, before going to the back of his car and grabbing one of the blankets and the flashlight he kept in his trunk. 

He walked back to Michael’s side, grabbing the younger boy’s hand before turning on his flashlight. They walked quietly for a minute, before getting to the barn door. Luke pulled it open, before leading Michael to the ladder that would lead them to the loft, where the barn used to hold hay. Michael crawled away from the edge, before trying to peer through the darkness to see where Luke intended on taking him. Luke popped up over the edge, blanket slinged over his shoulder and his flashlight in his mouth. He crawled towards Michael, before getting up slowly, grabbing his flashlight, and reaching for Mike’s hand. Mike used it to pull himself up, and Luke walked towards the end of the building, where Michael could see a bit of natural light peeking through. Luke quickly got to the area where the roof had fallen in years prior. He spread out the blanket, before laying down on the blanket and patting the spot next to him. Michael layed down, gently leaning his head on Luke’s shoulder before letting out a sigh of content. 

“So, are you interested in astronomy?” Michael questioned, noticing the unfiltered view of the sky and the stars above. He glanced over at the man keeping him company, whose eyes were absolutely glowing with excitement. It was the first notice that Michael had taken to one of Luke’s interests, and Michael latched onto it like a leech. Luke snorted softly, nodding just a bit. 

“How’d you figure it out?” Michael giggled softly at Luke’s response, before Luke continued on. “My friend and I got to spend the nights here sometimes, and he hated heights so he’d always sleep in the hay bales that used to be underneath here. But as soon as this section of the roof fell out, I made a makeshift mattress out of hay and blankets up here. So from then on, whenever we spent the night, he’d lay down there and I’d lay up here, and we’d just talk until one of us fell asleep. One time we stayed up so late, I was able to see the sunrise from here, and I totally cried.” Michael broke out with a wild laugh, hitting Luke’s arm softly.

“Did you really?” 

“Yeah, of course! I cry when I see beautiful feats of nature.” Michael lied his head back on Luke’s shoulder.

“So, if you’re such a star nerd, feel free to educate me on some of those constellations.” Luke rolled his eyes, before slipping an arm under Michael’s head. 

“Well, strap in, pastel boy. First of all,” he pointed at a line of three stars, “that’s O’Rion’s belt. It’s the easiest constellation to find because of it. If you follow it up you can see his chest, and his arm holding out his bow. Basically, he walked in on the virgin goddess Artemis bathing, so she turned him into a deer and sent his hounds after him. Afterwards, he ended up in the stars. Or, that’s an extremely simplified version of the story.” Michael shook his head. 

“Straight people, am I right?” Luke snorted in response, before nodding to himself. 

“They sure are something.” 

“Like a different species! Like, why do all straight guys have to say ‘no homo’ after touching someone? I’m touching you right now and I don’t have to scream ‘no homo’ about it!” Michael was preparing to go off on a tangent before Luke interrupted. 

“I mean, this kind of is full homo. So saying ‘no homo’ would kind of defeat the purpose of this date.” Michael’s cheeks turned red. While he had suspected it was a date, he didn’t want to assume anything, and it took him a second to get his train of thought back. 

“That’s true, but like, they’ll brush hands and jump back from each other like it’s poison! When I came out to my old best friend, he started saying no homo about everything. I’d say ‘hey, what’s up’. And he’d be like ‘I’m feeling pretty happy! But not gay though, you know. No homo’. AND I JUST WANTED TO TEAR HIS HAIR OFF!” 

“I support you in your endeavor to tear straight guy’s hair off.” Luke chipped in, and Michael huffed. 

“You better. Or else I’ll tear yours off.”

“I thought you liked my new hair style!”

“Fine. I’ll let you keep your hair.” Michael huffed, and Luke chuckled softly. “Okay! Back to the stars.” Luke rolled his eyes playfully, before pointing up at the brightest star in the sky. 

“That’s the south star, and I use that to find the southern cross. Which is actually opposite to how most people do it. But the cross is also extremely easy to find. It wasn't really created by myths as much as it was decided on by navigators in order to find the SouthStar, which was obviously used for navigation. Of course, there’s Ursa Major and Minor, which are the Big and Little Bears. Basically, Jupiter, who was Zeus’ Roman counterpart, couldn’t keep it in his pants either. He fell in love with a young maiden, and his wife, Juno, got piiiiiiiiissed. Eventually, the maiden had a kid and Juno assumed it was Jupiters, so she turned the maiden into a bear so the maiden would no longer be beautiful. However, the son was able to live a normal life, and grew up to be a hunter. Once, while out on a hunt, his mother saw him. Overcome with joy, for this was the first time the maiden had seen her son in ages, she started running towards him. Unfortunately, she forgot she was a bear, and thinking he was being attacked, he shot an arrow at her. Jupiter saw the arrow and managed to stop it, and to protect the mother and son from further torment by Juno, he turned the son into a bear as well, before flinging them up into the sky. And that’s how they became a constellation. Now, about Canis Major, the dog-” Luke was cut off by a slight snore, and he glanced at Michael, who was fast asleep. He glanced at his phone, and hummed slightly, seeing it was 11. Luke shook Michael awake, who jumped to attention. 

“I’m listening! I’m list-” 

“Shhhh. I think it’s time for us to get you home. I’ll grab the blanket and everything and I’ll meet you at the bottom of the ladder.” Michael nodded, before crawling back to the ladder and climbing down. Luke gathered up everything he had brought with then followed Michael down, grabbing his hand yet again and leading him back towards his car. Upon arrival, Luke opened Michael’s door for him, watching Michael plop into the passenger’s seat in exhaustion. The older man gently closed the door behind him then threw the blanket and the flashlight in the trunk. He went to his own side of the car, chuckling softly as he noticed Michael was already asleep again. Luke slowly backed out of the gravel driveway, before finally hitting the smooth pavement of the highway. He drove in quiet contemplation, listening to the soft snoring next to him. 

It didn’t take long for him to return to Michael’s house. As soon as he pulled in, Karen opened the door and stepped out. 

“How’d it go?” she questioned, and Luke shushed her softly as he opened Michael’s door, gently lifting him up. She placed her hand over her heart, watching the taller man carry her son in. 

“I’ll put him in his bed. If there’s anything else you need, just let me know.” he spoke softly as to not startle Michael, and Karen shook his head. 

“Just put him to bed. He’s had a long day, and he has another long day ahead of him.” Luke climbed the stairs slowly and carefully, gently laying Michael on his bed, before flicking off the fairy lights and closing the door. He walked downstairs, and Karen pulled him into a hug. “Thank you for bringing him home safely. Some people, you know… They might have just taken advantage of him…” Luke nodded in understanding. 

“I promise you, that’ll never happen. He fell asleep while I was teaching him about constellations.” Karen smiled softly, before placing a hand on Luke’s shoulder. 

“Drive safe, Luke, and have a good night.” 

“You too, Karen”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that in Australia they use Celsius so don't get too confused when I mention temps :)

Michael was walking among the stars, hand in hand with Luke as Luke explained what each star was and what it was apart of. He was looking around, awestruck, as Luke continued the story of O’Rion. The couple passed by a particularly bright star, which Michael reached out to touch. Before he could sink his hand into the white gold, his hand was swatted away. He looked up to see a chuckling Luke, who was shaking his head. 

 

“Stars are hot, Mikey. They’ll burn your hand off.” Michael shrugged a bit, looking at the star with interest lighting up his eyes, noticing Luke’s gaze on him. He eventually shivered, looking back at the older man and cocking an eyebrow.

 

“Take a picture. It’ll last longer.” Luke rolled his eyes, reaching over to ruffle Michael’s hair. He stopped for a second, looking off as if he was contemplating something, before turning back to the lilac haired man, his face tinged pink. 

 

“Hey, I really gotta tell you something. I think you’re really  **BEEP BEEP BEEP** ” Michael jumped a bit at hearing this, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. 

 

“I’m sorry, could you repeat that?” Luke nodded in understanding, before opening his mouth yet again. 

 

“I said I think you’re really  **BEEP BEEP BEEP** ”. Michael’s senses were suddenly shutting down, and his heart jumped in his chest, reaching out for Luke as Luke faded away. 

 

**BEEP BEEP BEEP**

**BEEP BEEP BEEP**

**BEEP BEEP BEEP**

 

Michael’s eyes peeled open, and he groaned softly at the loud screeching sound of his alarm. He threw his pillow across the room in an attempt to muffle the sound, which ultimately failed. Michael finally rolled out of bed, throwing his pillow back to where it belonged, and finally hit the off button on his alarm. He rubbed his eyes as he looked at the time blaring across the clock’s digital face in an aggressive red. 6:30. School. 

 

Michael slipped on his slippers, before walking down the stairs to where his mother was ready and waiting with a full breakfast prepared. He sighed, plopping into his chair and smiling blearily at his mom. 

 

“I heard some bumping around upstairs. Are you okay?” His mom asked, and Michael nodded, yawning softly. 

 

“I just think I prefer the method they used to wake us up at the clinic. You know, soft voices over blaring alarms” She laughed softly, reaching over to ruffle his hair, before perking up. 

 

“I almost forgot! You need to take your med.” Karen rushed over to the medicine cabinet, grabbing a pill bottle filled with Xenoren, opening it up and grabbing a small blue pill from the bottle. She set it down in front of her son, who grabbed it and dry swallowed it. Karen sighed softly. “You know I hate when you do that. You could choke, and you literally have a glass of orange juice  _ right _ in front of you” Michael shrugged before digging into his pancakes. After a couple minutes of both of them eating in silence, Karen looked up at him. “Are you ready to go back to school?”

 

“That depends. Am I ready to see my friends again? Yes. Am I ready to go to that hellhole in which everyone, no matter their strengths or weaknesses, no matter what they aim to do with their lives, are judged on the same standard by uncaring and cold teachers that don’t really even like children so why do they even teach? No, not really.” Karen reached over, grabbing his hand gently. 

 

“I’m going to be at work all day, but the school has Luke’s number, Dr. Irwin’s number, Mr. Irwin’s number, and if all of the above fails, they have my bosses number. Someone will come to get you if you get overwhelmed.”

 

“Why do they have Luke’s number?” 

 

“He  _ was _ your primary caretaker. If anyone knows anything about the care you need, it’s him. He’s also newly in charge of the after-patient outreach. I’m not really sure what it is, but I think they follow up with recently discharged patients and they’re the people that schools and jobs call if a patient has a breakdown.” Michael nodded softly, before getting up and cleaning his plate off, the only thing that he had left untouched being his bacon. Karen frowned softly. “You don’t like bacon anymore?” Michael shook his head. 

 

“I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I think I ate a bad bacon strip or something at the clinic and I can’t stand it anymore.” Karen smiled softly. 

 

“I’ll start making sausage instead.” Michael reached to his mom, hugging her tightly. 

 

“Thank you mom.” She ruffled his hair yet again, an old habit of hers from when he was small. 

 

“Go get dressed. School starts at 8:30, but the principal wants a short meeting with you” Michael groaned softly, running a hand through his hair. 

 

“I haven’t even returned to school and I’m already being punished?”

 

“It’s just a reintroductory meeting. Nothing too serious, I promise.” Michael rolled his eyes, then got up and stretched before taking his dish to the sink and rinsing it off. He then went up to his room, looking through his closet. Michael grabbed a pink sweatshirt, before grabbing his pair of overalls and pulling them up over his sweater. He rolled up the cuffs of his jeans, and pulled on his Timbs and reached over to his beanie, pulling it over his ears so only a few tufts of hair were showing. 

 

“Michael! It’s time to go!” Michael cracked his back, before grabbing his backpack and running downstairs. He jumped into the car, where his mom was already waiting. 

 

“You look cute” Karen reached over to pinch her son’s cheek, who groaned and ducked away from her. “Oh shush, I didn’t get to embarass you for a long time. I’ve gotta make up for missing time” Michael laughed softly, rolling his head back as his mom switched the radio to the classic rock station, 105.2. The almost-too-bubbly-for-7-am announcer started talking right as the previous song ended, and Michael half listened to it while watching the scenery out the window pass him by. 

 

“October 10! It’s a bright and shiny day here in Melbourne! As if it’s anything else, ever, amirite Kelly?” Kelly opened her mouth to respond, but was immediately cut off. “It’s a cool 10* out, so I hope you guys are all wearing your sweaters! However, it is supposed to hit a solid 12*, which isn’t hot, but not bad for fall!” Michael tuned out the radio as his mom started talking again. 

 

“You look nervous” 

 

“I’m not really sure what to expect. I mean, it’s just after break, everyone’s going into class from a week off, so I guess that’s good. But at the same time, what if no one remembers me? What if my old friends hate me or think I’m a pussy for having to go to rehab? What if-”

 

“Did you take your anxiety meds last night?” Karen questioned, glancing at her son, who shrugged a little bit. 

 

“I guess not. But I don’t think it’d help that much”

 

“You just have to remember to take all your meds. Xenoren won’t help your anxiety, Dr. Irwin made that very clear” As if on cue, they pulled up to the school as the conversation ends. They were about an hour early, so no one was in the parking lot, and Karen found a spot pretty quickly. The mother/son duo got out of the car, and Michael grabbed his bag, fidgeting with the straps as they walked up to the school together. Karen put a hand on her sons shoulder, then reached forward and opened the school door for him. They walked to the main office, and Michael stood rather awkwardly by the door while Karen talked quietly to the secretary. The lady got up and led the pair to the back office, where Principal Trenton lit up with a smile as he saw Michael walking towards him. He got up, holding his arm out towards Michael, who hesitantly shook the older man’s hand. 

 

Principal Trenton, who was about the same age as Karen, had light brown hair and gray looking eyes. He was on the heavier side, but far from unhealthy. He was wearing his regular suit and glasses, although he seemed to have a new addition to his style. Michael motioned to it.

“I like the goatee” Principal Trenton laughed heartily, and motioned to the seats. 

 

“Have a seat, you two.” He sat down at the same time as his two visitors, and he quickly tidied up his rather cluttered desk. He then pulled out a file that had been transferred to him by Dr. Irwin. “Michael, it’s good to have you back. I was sent this file to help you readjust, and in it I have Dr. Irwin’s number, Mr. Irwin’s number, and Mr. Hemmings’ number. I’m told to immediately reach out to Mr. Hemmings, but if he doesn’t answer or can’t make it to call Dr. Irwin or Mr. Irwin.” Principal Trenton looked up at Michael, fixing him with an almost steely gaze. “If there’s anyone in any of your periods that bothers you for going to rehab or may deteriorate your progress, you need to immediately speak to me. We can not and will not jeopardize the safety of our students, yours included.” Michael was staring at his hands. 

 

“What would happen to them?” 

 

“Nothing serious, unless they went out of their way to torment you, in which case we’d likely suspend them for a couple of days, possibly even expel them.” Michael started chewing on his thumb nail, nodding to himself, and Principal Trenton looked over at Karen. “Did Dr. Irwin wish for anything else for his return to school?”

 

“They want him to have an all excuse pass. If during class he feels he needs to leave for any reason, he can and should do so without facing any repercussions. Of course, that doesn’t mean he can do it if he’s bored” Karen reached over to ruffle her son’s hair. “Although I truly don’t think that will be a problem. They also want to make it clear that if he is to leave the classroom, he’s to go to the nurses office and hang out there until he feels ready to return to class. However, I am a little worried about him during lunch. I don’t want him eating lunch alone but I also don’t want him thinking kids are forced to sit next to him. He’s rather worried about his friends and whether or not they’ll accept him back.” 

 

“Considering how often they were in here to ask about Michael’s progress, I don’t think he’ll have a problem there. However, Michael?” Michael looked up from the piece of skin on his nail he was picking at. “If you’d like, you can go see your friends before school starts.” Michael grabbed his backpack quickly, pressing a kiss to his mom’s cheek, then rushed out of the office, the quiet noises of the older pair’s conversation fading behind him. 

 

He got into the hall, whipping his head around and searching for the direction he was aiming to go. Michael quickly realized that his friends would likely be in one of the practice rooms, and set up a brisk pace towards the music hall. Luckily it wasn’t that long of a walk, as Michael’s school wasn’t very big. He got to the entrance of the music department, and took a deep breath, before walking into the room. The inside was mostly creme, but with a thick, green stripe running horizontally across all the walls about 7 feet up. The ceilings were rather high, as it helped give better acoustics, and the walls were decorated with painted music notes, explanations of different clefs, posters with pseudonyms to help remember different techniques, as well as awards that the staff and students had won. Michael walked over to the plaques on the wall, scanning it for his. It didn’t take much time before he found his: Michael Clifford, Best in State; Piano Rendition of Beethoven’s “ _ Fur Elise _ ”. The boy smiled to himself, reaching up to trace his name gently, and just as he was about to touch his name, he was knocked off his feet. 

 

“MICHAEL!!!” A loud, rather excited voice screamed into his ear. After recovering from his fall, Michael managed to open his eyes, smiling as he recognized the face hovering above him. Olive, or “Liv”, as she preferred to be called, was looking at him with the same excitement that filled her very body at all times of the day. Her hair was the same shade of blue as Michael remembered, and her eyes were still the mysterious, dark brown shade that they’ve always been. The only new thing Michael could notice about her was her septum piercing, which he remembered she had been anticipating for her 18th birthday. Michael sat up, lighting up with a grin as he realized she was wearing his old army coat that he had given her two years prior. 

 

“Jeez Liv, he just came back, don’t send him off in a body bag.” Behind Liv was her much calmer counterpart, Ness. Ness’ hair was blonde and wavy, always meticulously styled and usually with some accessory in it that matched seamlessly with her outfit. Despite her calm sounding voice, her hazel eyes exposed her as being just as excited as her girlfriend. 

 

“Lay off, she just got her best friend back.” Zach mentioned, reaching down and helping Michael to his feet. In another world, Zach would be a star quarterback. What with his light brown hair and light blue eyes paired with a jawline that could cut through steel, he was a classic knockout for the ladies. However, in this version of the universe, he was a huge nerd and killed at playing the cello. Zach pulled Michael into a “bro hug” or, as Zach once called it, a “brug”. “How’ve you been man, feeling better?” 

 

“I mean, I’m feeling, period, so that’s a good sign” Michael cracked a grin, looking around at his friends as the sound of laughter filled the air. And as they all tripped over each other to get back into a practice room, Michael finally knew he was back. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wow this is super long but I thought it important to see Michael's first day back all in one chunk.

“So, Zach, have you met any special guys while I’ve been gone?” Mike immediately asked, and Zach rolled his eyes. 

 

“Still straight as a line, unfortunately for you,” Zach quipped and Michael rolled his eyes.    
  


“Not interested in a jock boy. I’ve got my eye on someone,” Ness looked up from her phone across the room, smiling at the lilac haired boy.

 

“That’s right, how is Rob?” Michael’s smile immediately got wiped off his face, his eyes darkening and his mouth twitching down into a frown. “Michael?” Ness was met in silence, and the room was so quiet one could hear a pin drop. “Is he the reason you had to go to rehab?” Michael nodded slowly, staring off into the distance. The entire demeanor in the room changed, with Liv suddenly ending up next to him and wrapping her arms around his torso. Ness’ usually happy and passive face was covered in a storm of an expression, her expression darkening and her knuckles tightening into an extremely tight fist. Zach was more vocal about his anger, pacing from side to side with his fist enclosed in his hand. 

 

“I swear to the Lord above, I’m going to beat his ass!” He was infuriated. “I don’t care if my mama whoops my ass for this, I’m gonna make him pay” Michael shook his head, and Zach stopped cold. 

 

“Your mom would be pissed. Besides, it’s not that important. You shouldn’t worry that much about me.” Zach sat next to him, his hand on Michael’s shoulder. 

 

“Mike. My mama loves you with all her heart. We’ve been friends forever. She might kick my ass, but she’d do it with pride. Ya know? My mama would claim you as one of our own if you weren’t so damn white” Michael snorted, punching Zach’s shoulder affectionately. “Like, I know my daddy’s white but there’s no way we could convince  _ anyone _ that you were one of us. Compared to us you look like a damn albino” Michael was curled up laughing, continuing to swat at Zach. 

 

“So, if it’s not Rob, who do you have your eye set on?” Liv spoke up, shaking Mike gently. Michael blushed, looking away and scratching the back of his head. 

 

“Uh, it’s a guy I met at the clinic” 

 

“A patient?” Ness asked, immediately pulled back into the conversation. 

 

“No, he’s a worker” Zach immediately jumped back up, pacing around yet again. 

 

“That shit’s illegal. An old ass worker who’s forcing himself on you? You didn’t ask for that shit and I-”

 

“It’s not like that” Michael spoke quietly. 

 

“Huh?”

 

“It’s not like that at all. I care about him. And he cares about me too. And it was up to me to decide that I wanted the relationship. He’s nothing but nice to me, he cares about me, he listens to what I have to say for better or for worse, and my mom likes him. Besides, he’s eighteen, so it’s not like he’s an old man or anything.” Liv smiled up at her best friend. 

 

“So when do I meet him?” Ness cleared her throat, and Zach raised his eyebrow. “Fine. When do  _ we  _ get to meet him?” Liv corrected herself, and Zach nodded approvingly. Michael shrugged just a bit, shaking his head. 

 

“I don’t know, I don’t wanna rush anything, ya know?” Liv nodded softly, looking up as the five minute warning bell rang. 

 

“Wanna get to calc?” Michael shook his head, but stood up anyway

 

“Let’s get going.” He answered, and Liv ran across the room to press a gentle kiss to Ness’ cheek. 

 

“We’ll see you two at lunch!” Liv walked out, and Mike threw a peace sign over his shoulder as he walked away.

 

The first three periods of his day were with Liv, then it was lunch with the four of them, workshop with Ness, Chamber Orchestra with Zach, and finally… Gen Foods with Rob. Mike has constantly been worrying about that period, but decided to put it in the back of his mind until the time comes. Until then, he walked alongside Liv to his first class of the day, the class likes but dislikes at the same time. Michael sunk into his seat in the front, waving as Liv walks to the other side of the room to sit in her seat. Michael sighed softly, his eyes scanning the courtyard outside. He watched Zach run across the courtyard to get to his class, and jumped as he noticed a sudden hand on his shoulder. A fake, sugar sweet voice that he despised filled his ears. 

 

“Hiiiiiiii, Miiiiiichael!!!” It was Trinity, the most popular gal in school. The gal that he “dated” in middle school and broke up with after coming out. The gal that assumed that he was just “dating” her to make her look bad. The gal who can’t let go of a grudge.Trinity holds out all the “i”s in her speaking and was basically the human equivalent of a poison dart frog. Beautiful, but will kill you in an instant. She leaned over Michael’s desk, her designer purse hitting his desk. “IIIIIII heard you were iiiiiin rehab? Why???” She basically screamed this to the class, and Michael turned his head to ignore her. From across the room, Liv was about to get up and defend Michael, but he shook his head and motioned for her to sit down. 

 

“Well, Miiiiiiiichael? Aren’t you going to answer me?” Mike’s mouth was defiantly glued shut, his eyes continuing to scan the courtyard. Trinity straightened back up, observing her nails and her voice turning cold. She wasn’t here to make friends. “I bet it was drugs. Or a failed suicide attempt,” she scoffed to herself, before looking at Michael with what could only be described as pure hatred. “You can’t even kill yourself right, can you, pretty boy?” Michael’s right eye twitched, but he’d be damned if Trinity got a reaction out of him. She hovered around his desk for another minute before huffing, storming off to her desk. Liv was watching Michael from across the room, and mouthed ‘are you okay?’ with an extremely concerned expression. Michael shrugged softly, and sighed with relief as Mrs. Bentley finally walked in, and the bell signaling the beginning of class rang. 

 

“Hello, hello class, welcome to another  _ beautiful _ day in Calc! Michael, welcome back. It’s good to see you. Today we’re focusing on reviewing our trig functions. Get out your notebooks and get ready to learn!” She clapped her hands, before starting class. 

 

Michael wasted no time in pulling out his notebook, flipping it open to his last page of notes and started writing. He was back in a regular routine. 

  
  
  
  
  


A couple periods later, Michael finally sank down at his usual spot at the table between Zach and Liv, collapsing in a heap and groaning. Zach laughed, patting his back. 

 

“Did you forget how exhausting school was?” Michael nodded, keeping his head in his hands. Zach snorted again, and Michael finally straightened himself up to start picking at his chicken. His lips pulled up in a sneer. “What’d they feed you at the clinic?”

 

“It was basically a four star restaurant. I got scallops, shrimp, crabs, lobster, fish, shark, bunny, every damn day” Michael replied, eating his rubbery green beans. Liv hit him upside the head. 

 

“You so didn’t!”

 

“I didn’t. But the food there was at least edible.” Just then Ness popped in, setting beside Liv and pressing a kiss to the side of her head. 

 

“Hey, they were out of chocolate milk so you’ll have to settle for orange juice instead” Liv sighed melodramatically, whipping her hair out of her face.

 

“I can’t believe you’re forcing me to deal with subpar drinks!” Liv exclaimed, her eyes filling with fake tears. Ness rolled her eyes, pushing her gently. 

 

“Shut up, dork.” Ness leaned in, capturing Liv’s lips in a gentle kiss. The guys at the table ignored it at first, but as the kiss dragged on Michael eventually caved in and threw a green bean at the girls. 

 

“NO PDA!” They quickly pulled apart, Ness giving Michael the middle finger and Liv throwing the bean right back at him. By some miraculous chance, Michael managed to catch it in his mouth, and returned the middle finger. Zach nudged Michael.

 

“Now you see what I’ve been dealing with.” Ness quickly stuck up a second finger, while Liv reached over to Mike’s plate to grab a bean and threw it at Zach. When Zach tried to catch his, he ended up losing balance and fell off the back of his seat. On his way down, he desperately grabbed Michael in an attempt to save himself, and Michael had to grab onto the table to stop himself from following Zach down. Zach ended up on the floor anyway, holding onto Michael’s wrist with his legs tangled in the metal bars under the table. Michael shook his head, before getting up and helping his friend free himself and get back up. As the boys sat back down, Liv was curled up laughing and Ness shot Zach a look. 

 

“Serves you right.” She stated, and he rolled his eyes. The four friends continued their meal in absolute kahoots, making up for the missed time with their fourth member. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


The lunch bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period. Michael and Ness got up, with Ness intertwining her arm with his. 

 

“Are you ready to return to work shop?” Michael groaned, his head dropping back. 

 

“I hate that class! Remind me why I took it?” 

 

“Probably because it’s your senior year and you needed a credit for ‘applied sciences’.” Michael’s eyebrows pulled together.

 

“Doesn’t that admit that no other science is truly useful? If they are, then why aren’t they under applied sciences? If they aren’t, why are we wasting time learning them?” Ness shook her head, tutting her tongue. 

 

“Spoken like a true dumbass” Michael pushed her gently with the arm that was currently being held by her, and she snorted. They walked into their class and sat at their table. Luckily, at the beginning of the semester, the students had been allowed to pick their work mates. The two jumped at the chance to work together, and they’ve been workmates ever since. As they sat down, an old friend jumped in front their table. Adam was holding onto Michael’s arm, his face alight with excitement. 

 

“Mike! You’re back!” Michael stood up, pulling Adam into a tight hug. “We’ve missed you man. The orchestra has really been struggling without you” 

 

“I’m just a pianist, you can survive without me,” Adam’s eyes widened, shaking his head gravely. 

 

“You’ve been gone for two months. We lost all three of our competitions in that span. They’re calling you our good luck charm.” Michael scratched the back of his head, smiling a bit. 

 

“I’m glad to be back,” he spoke softly, shaking his head a bit. 

 

“We’re glad to have you back,” Adam responded, before patting Mike’s back and walking off to his desk. 

 

Mr. Thompson walked in, nodding at Michael before immediately launching into what the students were to be fixing today. 

  
  
  
  


Ness give Michael a quick hug goodbye at the end of the class, and Michael leaned up against his desk waiting for Adam to finish packing up. Adam finally shoved his notebook in his bag and got up, dashing to meet up with Michael. Michael nudged Adam with his arm gently, and Adam smiled at him, before clearing his throat kind of awkwardly. 

 

“So, I really need to talk to you,” he spoke hesitantly, and Michael’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“What’s up?” 

 

“You went to Dr. Irwin’s clinic, right? The Mistletoe Program?” Michael nodded slowly, and Adam scratched the back of his neck. “Was there anyone there by the name of Axel?” Michael’s face lit up at the mention of his fellow patient’s name. 

 

“Yeah! He was actually my therapy partner. Everyone had two workers helping them, a day and a night worker, and ‘shared’ them with one other patient. The one I ‘shared’ with was named Axel,” Michael paused, looking at Adam suspiciously. “Why? Do you know him?” Adam shrugged, before nodding and staring off to the side. 

 

“We were best friends. But apparently Axel was kicked out by his dipshit family.”

 

“What happened?”

 

“It’s not really my place to talk about it, but just know his family is super close minded and terrible. I tried to get into the clinic to see if he was there and if he was, if I could see him. But they said since there’s no record of me being related to anyone in the clinic, they can’t tell me anything about anyone. Not even if he was there or not,” Adam sighed a bit, his shoulders slumping. Michael patted his back gently. 

 

“Axel’s okay. He’s getting top of the line help. He even started talking again by the time I left. He’ll return to you. And when he gets out they’ll probably let him go out on his own, and I’m sure he’ll contact you when he can.” Adam nodded, looking up as Zach joined the conversation. 

 

“Adam, my man! What’s up?” Adam’s demeanor completely changed, going from upset and slumped to his normal upbeat attitude. 

 

“Nothing much, man! How was your night?” 

 

“It was amazing! My mama made her world famous chili, and it was the absolute best. Also,” Zach slung his arm around Michael’s neck, “I got the news that one of my best buds was returning to us. And of course, our best rhythm keeper.” Michael laughed, looking between the two.

 

“I heard you guys have been losing without me” 

 

“All the judges say ‘You’re lacking a piano player, we can’t let you win’ and we  _ try _ to explain why you’re gone but they don’t care! It’s like they’re looking for a reason to keep us from winning!” Zach exclaimed, his face alight with irritation. 

 

“We’ve won for years and years. A couple losses won’t kill us. We’re still the best orchestra in the state,” Michael pointed out, to which Zach and Adam laughed. 

 

“True that,” Adam piped in, while Zach had his own “amen, brother,” thrown in. The three rounded the corner, entering the music department and opening the heavy oak door to the orchestra room. Almost as soon as they walked in, Mrs. Jeffries was right there, pulling Michael into a warm hug. 

 

“Thank the Lord above you’re okay, Michael. We’ve missed you so much!” She exclaimed, before starting to lead him to her desk to give him the sheet music they were working on now. Michael waved goodbye to his friends, before following her over. “We’re only working on three songs this time around. First is a medley of John Williams, then it’s Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, and finally Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.” Michael’s face lit up, looking up at her. 

 

“All four seasons, right?” 

 

“Of course. We actually picked that for you, since we knew it was your favorite orchestral piece.” Michael’s face absolutely lit up, his eyes tearing up just a little bit. 

 

“I’ve always dreamed of playing it for an orchestra” 

 

“I know you have. Here’s your chance!” As soon as Mrs. Jeffries said this, the bell rang. She patted his shoulder gently, then went to the front of the class. Michael quickly organized his music, then dashed over to the piano.  _ His  _ piano. He sat down at the bench, and at the sound of a single note being plucked by him, everyone’s head turned. Michael was immediately met with a chorus of cheers, the entire orchestra excited to have him back. Michael stood up, bowing dramatically until Mrs. Jeffries called the class to attention. 

 

“Hey! I know you guys are excited, and I am too. But we have a lot of ground to cover. C’mon first cello. Give me that tuning A,” Zach nodded, playing an A to allow the orchestra to tune. As everyone finished tuning their A’s, Adam looked around before standing up and motioning for the orchestra to finish tuning. Michael watched the first cello and principal violin work in perfect, practiced sync with each other, and realized how hard they practiced to get their transition smooth for comps. Mrs. Jeffries was flipping through her score, before looking up.    
  


“Alrighty, let’s start with the melody. Remember, Michael hasn’t played any of this yet, so take it easy on him.” Everyone got into ready position, and Mrs. Jeffries gave the count off. Michael allowed the spirit of the instrument to flow through his fingers, taking a deep breath before coming in. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Michael slowly got up from the piano after the class, stretching and cracking his neck. He put his new music into his folder then slipped his folder into his backpack, ready to get home and practice his music. He waved goodbye to Adam and Zach, who walked to their next class together. Michael hovered around the orchestra room doors for a moment out of habit, then shook his head and walked on to his general foods class. It would be the only class that he would now walk to alone. Michael pulled his backpack closer to his body, his back slightly hunched. When he reached the class, he sunk into his seat in the back corner, curling up on it and wrapping his arms around his knees. He stayed hunched over as the classroom filled up, his eyes squeezed shut and taking shallow breaths. Mike didn’t even look up as his work partner, Sawyer, sat down next to him. Finally, the pair of beat up converse that he would never forget walked into the room. The shoes paused as Rob assumedly noticed Michael, and quickly continued to their spot across the room. Michael kept his head in his arms until Mr. Tyson finally walked in. The bell rang, and Mr. Tyson launched into the lesson with no formalities. They were watching a documentary about different types of french cooking techniques, and Michael was relieved that there would be no interacting with other classmates.

 

Michael was watching the documentary with intent interest, until Sawyer tapped his shoulder, handing him a note. Michael took the note, and looking at the writing on it, he immediately recognized that Rob had sent it. The front of it said “Mikey”. God, Michael hated that Rob thought he still got to use that name. He shot a glare at Rob, whose back was turned to him. Michael shook his head, before slowly opening the note. 

 

**Mike**

 

**One last hookup before you go kill yourself?**

 

**Rob xx**

 

Michael’s heart absolutely froze, his eyes widening at the message. He looked up at Rob again, who was now leaned back in his seat, a smug look covering his face. And just like that, Michael’s world started swimming. He felt like he was gonna throw up, scream, cry, and tear his hair out all at the same time. He stood up, his vision suddenly unreliable. Michael picked up his backpack, stumbling his way out of the room and plodding to the office. Luckily, the office wasn’t that far from the General Foods classroom and he managed to make it to the office without much problem. All of the office staff was crowding him, asking him if he was okay, patting his back, rubbing it, trying to console him. Michael rubbed his eyes, his vision swimming and his balance swaying. One more hand joined all the rest on his back, and it was suddenly too much. Michael fell to his knees, unleashing the loudest scream he had ever and would ever scream. Michael was curled in on himself, his hands tangled in and tugging on his hair, as if he was desperately trying to rip all of it out, his eyes absolutely burning. Out of nowhere, a loud, commanding voice overtook the office. 

 

“Give him room!” Everyone backed up, looking at Principal Trenton for guidance. Michael was curled up on the ground, whimpering and shivering as he walked up to him. Principal Trenton helped the young man up, assisting him to his office and allowing him to fall into a chair across Trenton’s desk. Principal Trenton sat next to Michael, his firm hand laying on Michael’s shoulder. Michael was rocking back and forth, his grip on his hair slowly loosening. He kept repeating something over and over again, and when P. Trenton leaned in to hear what he was saying. 

 

“Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke Luke” Michael was chanting his caregivers name over and over again, almost like it was a mantra. Trenton rubbed Michaels back gently, speaking calmingly. 

 

“He’s already on his way. I called him as soon as your Gen Foods teacher messaged me saying your left without notice.” Michael nodded just a bit, his head falling to the side and slumping over, staring at his flower mark as it faded in and out. His eyes closed, nuzzling his face into his knees. Michael stayed like that for a while, breathing heavily, until finally the front doors opened. He looked up slowly, his heart filling with relief and gratitude as he saw Luke talking quietly with the lady in registration. Michael got up, stumbling his way over to Luke and collapsing into his side, his eyes squeezed shut. Luke wrapped his arms around Mike, holding him close while quickly signing Michael out from school. Luke then led Michael out of the building, holding the younger man closer and supporting him on his trudge out of the school. 


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place on the same day as Chapter 12

Luke woke up the day after his date, a smile still covering his lips. He sat up slowly, stretching just a bit, before glancing over at his phone. A small huff passed through his lips, seeing the uncaring time on the clock. 8:30. He had exactly 45 minutes to get ready for the day before he was to leave so he made it to work by 10. Although he no longer worked the 10-9 schedule, he did still work from 10-6. He would have one hour long therapy session, an hour private therapy, an hour for lunch with the patients from noon to one, then two half hour therapy sessions, an hour long therapy session, an hour long “meeting” (gossip hour) with Dr. and Mr. Irwin, one last hour for therapy, dinner, then home. 

 

The private therapy sessions were for Axel and a new patient that came in worse than Axel, Ryan. Ryan will have private therapy, where Luke spends some of the time talking to them privately, and some of the time teaching them guitar. Axel doesn’t really need that much help anymore, but he still needs the routine of seeing Luke to avoid the relapse. In fact, on the non therapy days, Luke will still be coming in from 10-3 for his overview of the outreach section, and he’d be spending lunch and dinner with Axel for the normacy. 

 

Monday through Friday, he worked a 10-3 outreach program, which just existed to go out, find the former patients, check in on how they were, and make sure they knew there was a place for them to go if they needed help. However, on Tuesdays and Fridays, Luke would be focusing his attention on music therapy with the patients. Of course, if any of the patients needed him while he was supposed to be doing his music therapy, the patients would take importance over his music therapy. He spent Saturday and Sunday “on call”, meaning he wasn’t at work but if a outreach patient needed him, he was there. 

 

Luke pulled himself out of bed, stumbling to his bathroom and leaning against the wall, blinking out sleep as he completed his essential morning pee. After, he would jump in the shower, scrub himself awake, and get out into the foggy reality of the bathroom. Luke flipped the switch that turned on the fan, and took his towel to his hair, ruffling it up in order to dry it out. He then tied it around his hips, then leaned over his sink to wash his face and brush his teeth. Luke looked up at his hair, ruffling it about a bit, before shrugging. Michael had said he liked the flat hair, so there was no point in spending forever in the bathroom meticulously placing each strand of hair when it wasn’t that bad without the work. Instead, he could use that time to make himself a healthy breakfast. 

 

Luke plodded into the kitchen, donned only in his boxers and his slippers. He opened his fridge, reaching for his greek yogurt and his blue-and-black-berries. He threw some of the yogurt into a clear bowl, layering granola over it and topping it off with berries. Knowing that wouldn’t keep him full, he also reached for a banana. As he sat down at his table, he took out his phone. Luke smiled softly to himself, looking at the text conversation between him and Michael from the night before. Michael and him had gone on what was essentially Luke’s dream date. He got to teach a cute boy about something he cared about, and the boy was comfortable enough to fall asleep in his company. Luke felt like a match had been lit in his chest everytime he thought about the younger boy. He felt full, lit, happy. Luke was on top of the world after getting used to being on the bottom of it. 

 

He slowly munched on his parfait, before glancing up at  the time. It was 9:03. His eyes widened, realizing he lost track of time, then he scarfed down the rest of his food and dropped his bowl in the sink. Luke then rushed to his room, pulling on a pair of skinny jeans and a maroon sweater, before finally pulling on his shoes. He got up from his bed, stretching yet again, and glancing at his phone again. Grabbing his house keys, he left the building for the day. 

 

He was about to start his morning walk, his guitar in hand and his bag slung over his back. Something, however, was tugging at his gut. Luke stared at the pavement ahead of him, before shaking his head and walking to the parking garage to get his car. Because he made the 45 minute walk in a 15 minute drive, Luke got to work with about 30 minutes before his shift started. He got out, walking into the building and going to put everything in his locker. When he opened it, he was shocked to realize someone else’s stuff was in his locker. Luke shook his head, staring at it again, before realizing with a jolt that he had his own office. A smile started tugging on his lips as he made the trek to the office directly next to Dr. Irwin’s. 

 

As he entered it, he looked around the room slowly. The room was painted a forest shade of green, but the walls and shelves were empty as of yet. Luke reached into his backpack, pulling out three framed pictures. One was of him and his family, one of him and Harry, and one of him along with Ashton and Calum. Luke sat in front of his computer, looking at it curiously, pulling up the control panel and starting to set it up. A soft knock was heard at his door. 

 

“Come in,” he called, and Calum stepped into his office. The adult smiled fondly at the picture of him, his husband, and Luke, before looking at the younger man. 

 

“I’m glad you’re finally setting up your office”

 

“I just happened to have time, I don’t really care all too much about making it too fancy. I won’t be in here much” Calum nodded, sitting across from him. 

 

“How did your date with Michael go?” Luke coughed of surprise, scratching the back of his neck with his cheeks flushing in embarrassment. Calum cocked an eyebrow, smiling fondly at Luke. “You think I’d forget?” Luke shrugged just a bit, smiling bashfully. 

 

“It went pretty good. I took him stargazing and taught him about the constellations. He fell asleep, so I took him home and went home myself.” Calum reached across Luke’s desk, flicking an eyelash off of his cheek. 

 

“You should’ve gotten more sleep, you look a mess”

 

“Okay,  _ mom _ ,” Luke shot back, and Calum shot him a shit eating grin. 

 

“Someone’s gotta take care of you.”

 

“How about you? Didn’t you and Ashton have an anniversary last night?” Luke questioned, and Calum sighed. 

 

“Yeah. I sat there waiting at our favorite restaurant for an hour. He promised he’d be there by six and at seven I just boxed up my food and went home. He never came,” Calum was staring at his hands, his fingers intertwined. “His work is more important to him than I am, I guess.” Luke’s head shook, looking at the other man with pity. 

 

“He probably just forgot, Cal. It was a misunderstanding.”

 

“It’s been the same date for seven years, Luke. This is the first year he’s forgotten. He doesn’t even come home anymore! I understand his work is important, but… aren’t I too?” Calum looked up at Luke, his eyes heavy with what seemed to be weeks, if not months worth of questions. “And I know he’s not having an affair, he’s not that type of person. I try my best to help here but… I want my husband back, Luke. I wanted… I wanted to talk about adopting a kid with him last night.” Calums head came to rest in his hands yet again, and Luke walked over to pull Calum into a tight hug. The older man nuzzled his face into Luke’s rather broad shoulders, allowing him to be held in Luke’s arms. He let out a long sigh, his breath flowing over Luke’s back. “He hasn’t even apologized.” 

 

Luke pulled away slowly, half expecting to have to wipe a tear from the Maori man’s cheek. However, in an astonishing view of the man’s strength, he was holding it together. Luke dropped to his knees, holding Calum’s surprisingly small hands in his own. 

 

“You need to talk to him about it. You can’t just stew in anger, it’ll just ruin your guy’s relationship. You’re a literal trained therapist and he’s a doctor. Both of you know how to talk. So… talk! Tell him what you want and need, and explain the steps he could take to help you guys.”

 

“What if he gets upset?”

 

“Is he really the type to be upset when his significant other is struggling with something?” Calum’s eyes met Luke’s, and his head started shaking slowly.

 

“He’s not.” 

 

“So take deep breaths. Everything will be fine. If needed, I’m sure you guys could find someone to run this place from Friday through Sunday. That way, not only will Ashton be fulfilling his assumed duties of being here for most of his time, Monday through Thursday, and you guys will have the weekend together. And tell him that he should come home at night. Whoever takes his Friday through Sunday could also take overnights. Nothing major happens overnight, so he shouldn’t have to worry.” Calum was staring over Luke’s shoulder out the window, and he was nodding slowly, but he didn’t seem to be 100% in the conversation. “Calum, are you okay?” Instead of responding to his question, Calum held out his right wrist. One of his four flower marks were gone. 

 

“I’m scared, Luke.” With that, Calum finally broke down into a mess, hiding his face in his hands, one over his eyes to hide his tears and the other over his mouth to muffle the sobs tearing their way out of his chest. Luke pulled him back into his arms, holding him as close as he could, rubbing Cal’s back and shushing him softly. 

 

“It’s okay. You’ll be okay. I promise,” Luke reassured, rocking them back and forth gently. After a bit of sitting like that in silence, Calum pulled himself away and wiped his eyes almost aggressively, like he was trying to erase the fact that he was crying from his own memory. 

 

“I’ll be fine.” Luke watched him carefully, before nodding slowly. 

 

“You’ll be fine.” He parroted back, and Calum shot him a weak grin. 

 

“Thanks for listening to an old man’s laments”

 

“You’re only 30, you’re not that old” Calum shrugged in response, before standing up and straightening himself out. 

 

“I’ve got to go deal with some patients, I’ll talk to you later. It’s about time you clock in as well.” Luke nodded in response, and Calum shot him one last smile before walking out of the office, his calm and kind personality returning as if nothing had ever happened. 

 

Luke looked at the time on his computer, and, noticing it was 9:58, he pulled up the employee information screen. He entered in his old ID number, and a big red DENIED flashed across his screen. Luke’s eyebrows furrowed together, before realizing that he now had an administrative ID. He smiled to himself just a bit as he entered in his new ID (a combination of his mom and his dad’s birthday) and his password (BillyJoeTheCatRox). His schedule for the day popped up, and he quickly copied it down onto his phone, then clicked the “CLOCK IN” button. The employee information screen stopped to load for a second, then a message popped up confirming his clock in at exactly 10. He logged out of the employee information, then got up, grabbing his guitar, and making his way to the music room that he had helped Ashton design. He looked around the peach room, smiling at all the guitars set up against the wall and the chairs set up in a circle.

 

As Luke sat down in his chair to tune his guitar, the door opened, indicating that his first group was coming in. He looked up to greet them, and smiled as he noticed Harry was leading them in. The curly haired man walked over, pinching Luke’s cheek, and dropping on his knees to talk quietly with the other worker. As they were conversing, Niall and Ashley walked in together, looking around a bit as if they were confused, before catching sight of the acoustics in the corner. Niall grabbed Ashley’s hand, pulling her to the guitars. They both picked one out, then sat down in the circle. As they sat down, Harry stood up, laughing to himself, before patting Luke’s shoulder and walking out of the room. The rest of the group sat down, and Luke launched into the lesson. 

  
  
  
  


The hour absolutely flew by, and before Luke knew it, Harry had returned to pick up the therapy group. The flowerless that could wished him goodbye, and the rest just nodded at him. As the group cleared out, a new worker led Axel in. She smiled at Luke, before patting Axel’s shoulder and walking out. Axel made his way over to Luke, hugging him tightly, and Luke smiled to himself, holding him close. Axel sat down across from Luke, and Luke spoke quietly.

 

“Hey, Axel” Axel’s eyes widened, before he curled in on himself, shaking his head and trembling. “Hey, what’s wrong?” Luke questioned, and Axel looked up at him, his eyes wide and almost wild. Luke walked over to him, kneeling in front of him and laying his hand on Axel’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s just me. You can trust me. We’re friends, remember, Axel?” And with that, Axel let out a shout. Luke jumped, falling backwards and putting his hands up in an attempt to show his lack of danger. Axel’s hands were over his ears. 

 

“NOT AXEL NOT AXEL NOT AXEL” he was chanting over and over again, and Luke’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“Who, then?” he questioned quietly, laying his hand on the patient’s elbow. The patient looked up at him, twitching and shivering. Luke had stopped expecting an answer, and stood up to pull Axel into a hug when the patient spoke in a quiet, almost inaudible voice. 

 

“Melody” 

 

“Your name’s Melody?” 

 

“I am Melody. I am a girl” Melody’s hands found her chest, and she started rubbing it with a look of regret covering her face. Luke’s face lit up in understanding. She was trans. That was why her family kicked her out. They couldn’t handle their son telling them that she truly couldn’t stand her body, and needed to be a girl. Luke nodded, his hand resting on her shoulder. 

 

“Alright, Melody. Can I change your file? It might help you feel better. No one here will judge or hurt you” Melody’s eyes met Luke’s, and she nodded slowly. Luke smiled at her reassuringly, before opening her file and changing her gender from “M” to “F”, then crossed out her name and wrote in “Melody”. “Alright, are you ready to start your lesson?” Melody nodded again, so Luke got up to grab her a guitar, helping her tune it, then they launched into a lesson. 

  
  
  


Luke looked up at the time, and stretched, noticing it was time for lunch. He helped Melody up, leading her to the lunchroom and walking up to get food with her. They sat down together at a lunch table, and Melody opened her mouth to talk to Luke. However, Luke saw Dr. Irwin from across the room, and leaned over to talk to Melody quietly. 

 

“I gotta go talk to Dr. Irwin, I’ll come back in a minute or so,” he explained, before launching to his feet and striding over to the Doctor. Luke lied his hand on Dr. Irwin’s shoulder, who jumped at the sudden contact. Ashton’s eyes were dark and heavily bagged, as if he hadn’t slept in weeks. Despite that, he shot a bright smile at Luke. 

 

“Hey, what’s up?” He questioned, and Luke handed him Melody’s files. 

 

“I think you should look at this when you get a chance. I’m sorry about Calum, by the way.” Ashton’s looked up at Luke, his tired eyes suddenly lighting up with fear. 

 

“What about Calum?” 

 

“You haven’t heard?” Luke asked, and Ashton shook his head, his eyebrows pulling together in confusion. “He lost a flower last night.” The doctor’s shoulders slumped, his head coming to rest in his hands. 

 

“He’s only got three left,” Ashton mumbled to himself, before looking up at Luke. “How’d you know? Why did he tell you?” Luke shook his head. 

 

“You need to talk to him about that. I can’t be the messenger. I’m-” Ashton’s eyes widened, his hand flying to his hair. 

 

“Fuck! Last night was our anniversary! I was supposed to-” The doctor pulled back his sleeve looking at his inner elbow. Next to his three naturally existing flowers was a smaller, fainter mark, indicating he had taken it from someone. "Dammit! I gotta go." And with that, he quickly walked off, Melody’s file held close to his chest. Luke sighed to himself, walking back to sit next to Melody, who was picking at her salad and exchanging a few words with Harry. Luke nodded at Harry, who turned his attention to Luke. 

 

“What was that about?” He asked, and Luke sighed softly. 

 

“A doctor’s being an airhead, the usual.” Harry snorted with laughter, before continuing his conversation with Melody. Luke stared at his food, pushing it away from him and staring off at the wall, mulling things over in his mind.

 

It was 2:45, and Luke was talking to one of the patients in his second to last group therapy session of the day, when his work phone started ringing from his pocket. He patted the patient’s shoulder, before stepping away to answer the phone. 

 

“Luke Hemmings, Mistletoe Program, can I help you?” He recited into the phone. 

 

“Hello, this is Principal Trenton from Woodson High,” The caller informed, and Luke’s eyebrows pulled together at the mention of Michael’s school. “It seems as though Michael’s left his last class of the day-” The principal cut off, a small muttering filling the sound of the phone. “He’s here in the office, he doesn’t look too good. I think you should come get him. Do you know the address?” He questioned.

 

“Yeah, I know wh-” Luke was cut off by a terrifying, soul shattering scream from the other end of the line. Principal Trenton spoke quickly into the phone. 

 

“Please hurry.” With that, he hung up, and Luke pulled the phone away slowly, running a hand through his hair before rushing out of the room. He sent a quick text to Harry so Harry could send a volunteer to watch the flowerless while he ducked into his office, quickly clocking out of work, signing out of his computer, and grabbing his bag. He basically ran out to the parking lot, jumping into his car and peeling out of the parking lot. While on his way to the school, Luke ended up speeding almost the entire time. 

 

Almost before his car even stopped, Luke was out and striding into the building, taking deep breaths and convincing himself to remain calm for Michael’s sake. He walked past a startled looking group of students before reaching the office, where he talked quietly with the secretary. She handed him a form to fill out in order to check Michael out of school. As Luke started filling it out, he noticed a sudden presence using him to support their weight. He looked down, seeing Michael holding on to him for dear life. Luke wrapped an arm around Michael, holding him tightly, protectively, as he finished signing the younger boy out.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not to sound rude,,, but I love my boys

Luke picked up Michael’s backpack for him, his arm slung around Michael’s shoulders and leading the smaller boy out of the building. Neither of them said a word on their trek to Luke’s car, and once they reached it Luke pulled the passenger’s door open for his younger counterpart. Before closing the door, Luke leaned in to press a gentle kiss to the side of Michael’s head, just under where his beanie rested. He gently shut the door, throwing Mike’s bag into the back seat, then got into the driver’s seat. Luke said nothing until he pulled out of the parking lot and was on the road.

 

“What happened, Mikey?” Michael was curled up on the seat, his knees tucked under his chin, staring out his window. Instead of responding, Michael reached for Luke’s hand. Luke glanced at him, his eyes shadowed in sadness, before grabbing his hand and intertwining their fingers. He felt a piece of paper pressing against his palm, but ignored it for now. Instead, he pressed a small kiss to Michael’s knuckles, continuing their drive in comfortable silence.

 

Luke pulled into his favorite Diner, turning off his car and got out, walking over to Michael’s side to let him out. Michael stood up shakily, immediately reaching for Luke’s hand again. Luke wasted no time throwing his arm around Mike’s shoulders again, leading him inside the building.

 

“Well hello, darlin’s! Are you two gonna want a table or booth today?” the waitress questioned, and as Luke opened his mouth to answer, he was cut off by Michael.

 

“Booth please” He commented quietly, and Luke nodded, before following the waitress as she led them to a booth. Luke slid in first, and rather than sitting across from him, Michael instead slid into the booth next to Luke, laying his head on Luke’s shoulder. The waitress put their menus in front of them, before walking off to give them time. Luke’s hand found the strands of Michael’s hair peeking out from under his hat, playing with them absentmindedly. Without a word, Michael handed Luke the piece of paper that had been pressing into his hand earlier.

 

Luke used his free hand to unfold the note, his gaze dropping as he read the absolutely horrid message written about Michael. He crumpled it up, shoving it into his pocket, and pulling Michael closer. While holding him, he spoke to Michael quietly.

 

“You’re more than a booty call. You’re so damn important to me. Don’t listen to him, okay? He’s a cunt.” Luke spoke softly, calmingly, and Michael found himself nodding along with Luke’s words. Agreeing with Luke 100%. Rob is a prick. Rob doesn’t deserve Michael. Rob was wasting his time cause Michael knew he was worth more than Rob.

 

“I’m sorry,” Michael almost whispered, and Luke looked at him warmly.

 

“You have nothing to apologize for. Thank you for understanding that you needed to get out of there.”

 

“I only had like 45 minutes left. I could’ve sucked it up until the end of the school day.”

 

“If you had, you might’ve ended up hurting yourself and ending up back where you started. I think you made the right decision.” Michael’s eyes dropped, and he nodded a bit. They sat on in silence, Luke looking at his menu and Michael looking at the same one through half closed eyes, focusing more on Luke’s smell of mint and leather, of Luke’s calming warmth and firm but gentle arm around Michael. The waitress came back, and Luke looked up to order for himself. When he and the waitress turned to Michael to find out what he wanted, he simply pointed at something. Luke ended up ordering for Michael, going by what Michael pointed at.

 

“I’m going to be talking to Principal Trenton, you know. About Rob,” Luke stated, and Michael sat up straight, shaking his head quickly.

 

“You can’t! He’ll get expelled!”

 

“He deserves it, Mikey.” Mike shook his head again, his eyes lighting up with fear.

 

“I don’t wanna be the snitch!”

 

“You won’t be. I’ll be.” Michael’s head found his hands, sighing into them. Luke’s hand dropped onto Michael’s shoulder. “I’ll see if I can just get him transferred out of your class with a warning, but even if it makes you angry, your safety is my first priority.” Michael nodded a bit, before slumping back into Luke’s side.

 

“I’m drained.”

 

“I heard the scream. I bet the breakdown took a lot out of you. That’s why we’re here, isn’t it?” Luke nudged Michael gently, who lit up with a smile. It was the first smile Luke had gotten out of him since he left the school. Luke grabbed Michael’s hand gently, turning it to see his flower mark. The flower he had grown back was still holding strong, the dark mole a stark contrast with the rest of his pale skin. Luke pressed a small kiss to Michael’s mark, before looking up at the younger boy.

 

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

 

“I’m glad you’re here.” A smile tugged at Luke’s lips, and both the boys were watching each other closely, their breath colliding in mid air. Luke’s vision dropped to the younger boy’s lips, and he reached forward to cup Michael’s cheek, slowly leaning towards him. Michael’s eyes fluttered shut, leaning towards Luke. And, with the absolute worst timing, the waitress returned, holding a bunch of plates.

 

“I’m sorry to interrupt!” she apologized as the two boys jumped apart from each other, Luke scratching the back of his neck from habit, and Michael’s cheeks lighting up pink. She placed the plates in front of their respective orders. Michael smiled at the hamburger sitting in front of him, and Luke nudged him gently.

 

“That’s almost bigger than you are!” He quipped as the waitress walked away. Michael laughed softly, picking up his burger and taking as big a bite as he could muster. Luke shook his head fondly, digging into his own meal of homemade chili. It was in this very restaurant where Ashton had offered him a job, and made him feel cared for along with his husband. This was the most comforting place he could think of, which is why this is the place he brought Mike.

 

The two ate in silence for a while, until Michael finally finished his plate. He leaned against Luke’s shoulder yet again as the older man continued eating his chili, Michael’s eyes sliding shut and breathing in Luke’s calming smell. Michael looked up as the waitress came to their table, grabbing his plate, and smiling maternally at him.

 

“Would you like some pie, sugar?” Michael smiled at her, shaking his head.

 

“No thank you,” He answered quietly, and she nodded, walking away quickly. Luke pressed a small kiss to Michael’s temple as he pushed his empty bowl away, his arm finding its place around Michael again.

 

“You ready to go home?” Luke questioned, and Michael nodded, scooting his way out of the booth. Luke followed, getting up and stretching, then walking up to the welcome desk and check out area. He pulled out his wallet, handing over his card as his waitress rushed over to enter in their ticket. She handed back his receipt and his card, and he took a pen to sign his name as well as give her a hefty tip. As he slid the signed receipt back to her, he smiled and thanked her, before grabbing Michael’s hand and walking out of the building.

 

Before they got into Luke’s car, Michael stopped Luke, staring off in the distance. Luke’s eyebrows pulled together.

 

“What’s wrong?” Luke questioned, placing his hand gently on Michael’s shoulder. Michael took a deep breath, looking up at Luke. Without warning, he grabbed the collar of Luke’s shirt and pulled him down, getting on his toes and pressing a kiss to Luke’s lips. Luke, quickly recovering from his shock, let his hands fall to Michael’s waist, a small chuckle finding its way through his lips. Michael pulled away slowly, his face absolutely lit up red, before hugging Luke, his head nuzzled into the older boys chest. Luke held him close, sighing contently and rubbing his back.

 

“We should get going,” Luke mentioned, and Michael pulled away from his hold, nodding a bit. He got into his side of the car, and Luke followed suit. As they pulled out of the parking lot, Luke reached for Michaels hand, their intertwined hands lying on Michael’s thigh. Michael’s head was leaned back, staring out the window, his eyes half closed. Luke pulled his hand away, and as Michael opened his mouth to protest, Luke tossed him his phone, before grabbing his hand again.

 

“Pick a song” He commented, and Michael nodded, flicking through Luke’s library. Noticing a lot of recently added Ed Sheeran, he smiled to himself. Of course, that’s what he would pick. Michael hit shuffle on Ed’s discography, laying his head back, and allowing his eyes to slide shut.

 

Luke drove in silence, listening to what he had assumed Michael would pick. He kept stealing glances at Michael, smiling at him fondly, before pressing another kiss to his knuckles. Michael smiled to himself, his eyes opening just enough to catch glimpses of the scenery passing by. Luke finally pulled into Michael’s driveway, getting out and crossing to Michael’s side, opening the door for him. He pressed a gentle kiss to Mike’s cheek, escorting him to his front door. Michael unlocked it, turning around to hug Luke tightly. Luke rubbed Michael’s back, sighing softly.

 

“Thank you for coming to get me.”

 

“Thank you for leaving your class,” Luke replied, pulling away from the hug. As he was about to turn around and walk off, a second, green car pulled up beside his car. A girl with blue hair jumped out of the passenger’s seat, running up to the house and almost tackling Mike with a hug, running into Luke on her way up. Two other people got out, a blonde girl and a black boy with light brown hair.

 

“Mikey! We were waiting for you in the music room after school but you never came! The principal said you left early. What happened?” The blue haired girl questioned, and Michael shook his head slightly.

 

“I don’t really wanna talk about it, I’m sorry.” She nodded, holding him in her arms. The blond and the boy made their way up the stairs, the second girl talking with Michael quietly and the boy looking Luke up and down.

 

“So who the hell do you think you are?” He questioned, almost protectively. Luke shook his head, not wanting to start anything.

 

“I think I’m just leaving.” As he turned to walk down the steps on Mike’s porch, the back of his sweater was grabbed by the boy.

 

“I asked you a question. Our friend disappears from school and we come to his house to check on him and instead we get some random ass man standing outside his front door? Nuh-uh, that don’t add up.” Michael noticed what was happening, and jumped to Luke’s defence.

 

“Zach! Let him go. He’s a worker for the Mistletoe Program. He’s who came to pick me up.” Zach glanced at him, before quickly letting Luke go.

 

“I-I’m sorry,” he stuttered, scratching the back of his neck. “My mama says I jump to conclusions too much.” Luke shrugged a bit, straightening out his sweater.

 

“It’s cool. I’ve gotta get going. Michael, call me if you need me.” Luke spun around, walking away from the group and getting in his car. He pulled out of the driveway, and drove off.

 

Michael watched him leave, before punching Zach’s arm.

 

“That’s the guy! You didn’t need to be so rude!”

 

“I’m sorry, I’m- Wait. That’s the guy?” Michael’s chin went up, crossing his arms defensively.

 

“Yeah, so?” Liv jumped in immediately.

 

“He’s cute! I like him.” Michael smiled gratefully at her, and Zach shrugged.

 

“I don’t know the guy, so I can’t make any judgements.” Michael rolled his eyes, and turned to look at Ness. However, it seemed like Ness had already invited herself into his home, and was sitting in his living room, watching the tv. Michael walked in, the other two following him closely.

 

“So, what happened? Are you okay?” Liv questioned, and Michael shrugged a bit, rubbing his arms.

 

“It’s not a big deal. Don’t worry about it.”

 

“If it prompted you to leave school, then it’s a big deal,” Liv countered, and her expression suddenly went dark. “Was it Trinity? I’ll kick her-”

 

“It wasn’t her. It was Rob,” Michael answered quietly, staring at the ground. Noticing his obvious discomfort, Liv let it drop, shaking her head.

 

“Do you still have Tim Tams?” She questioned, and Zach’s snort from across the room sounded.

 

“His mom literally bought a million boxes. I’m sure he didn’t run out while he was in rehab.”

 

“I was being polite, unlike you,” she shot back, only to be hit with a pillow thrown from the couch that Zach was sprawled out on.

 

“That gives a new meaning to throw pillow” Ness quipped, and Zach slapped five with her. Liv gave out a betrayed gasp.

 

“You’re my girlfriend! You’re supposed to be on _my_ side!” Ness shrugged, smiling crookedly.

 

“My love of puns outweighs my love for you.”

 

“Fair enough,” Liv agreed, before walking off to Michael’s pantry. He sat down next to Zach, leaning his head against Zach’s shoulder.

 

“I’m so tired. We went to a diner and I ate like, a million pounds of food.” Zach snorted, patting Mike’s back.

 

“Okay big boy, we’re only here for a little bit,” he reassured. “Just until your mom gets home, then we’ll be out of your hair.” Michael nodded, his eyes getting heavier by the minute. While the rest of his friends watched TV, Michael dozed off, his head resting on Zach’s arm.

  
  
  


Michael woke up as Zach moved to get up, patting his back gently.

 

“Your mom’s here. We just wanted to make sure you weren’t alone. Have a good weekend, Mike. Call us if you need us,” He spoke quietly, before walking out with the other two members of their group. Michael smiled to himself, getting up and stretching a bit, then walking through the house to find his mom. When he found her in her bedroom, he collapsed on the bed next to her, leaning his head on her shoulder.

 

“Are you okay, hon?”

 

“Yeah, Luke came to pick me up.”

 

“He told me you were having trouble with another student. Do you need to talk to Principal Trenton about him?” Michael shook his head, sighing a bit.

 

“Luke’s talking to him about it later. He’s gonna try to just get the person transferred out of my class, instead of being flat out expelled.”

 

“Why would he do that?”

 

“I asked him to.” Karen nodded, sitting in a comfortable silence for a couple minutes.

 

“Do you want to go out to eat? We can go to your favorite restaurant.” Michael sat up, nodding a bit, before standing up to stretch.

 

“Let’s go!” The mother/son duo walked out to the car together, getting into Karen’s SUV and pulling out of the driveway, Michael’s head resting against the window.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WOWIE I STARTED OUT WITHOUT NOT KNOWING WHAT WAS GOIN ON IN THIS CHAPTER AND IT TOOK SHAPE RLLY WELL I'M SO PROUD

Michael woke up early the next morning and rolled over in an attempt to get to sleep again. It didn’t work, and after about fifteen minutes of tossing and turning, he gave up and pulled himself out of bed. Michael walked through his house, the only sound being the plodding of his bare feet on the hardwood floor. He looked around the kitchen, a surprised look settling on his face when he noticed his mom wasn’t there. He walked over to the fridge, pulling a note off the door. 

 

**Mikey,**

 

**I’ll be home around 6! No parties ;)**

 

**-Mom xx**

 

Michael snorted. As if he was popular enough to throw parties. He balled up the note and tossed it in the recycling, before starting to make his morning bowl of cereal. He plopped down in front of the tv with his breakfast, and switched over to his favorite show on Hulu; “The Eric Andre Show”. He ate at the pace of the snail, simply enjoying his early morning to himself. 

 

As he cleaned his bowl, Michael glanced at the time. He should probably do some homework. He dragged his way upstairs, pulling out his laptop and started it up. As soon as it opened, he was met with a song he had been working on right before his break up. Michael sighed, closing out of the tab without bothering to save the song, and went to his assignments page. Luckily, all of his assignments were online, so he only had to go one place. Math was a bit of a struggle, but he completed everything else rather easily. 

 

Almost as soon as he finished his workload, he received a call from Zach. A small smile covered his face, and he pressed the green answer button. 

 

“Hey Zach!” He chirped into the phone, and Zach laughed. 

 

“You seem happy for 11 am. Usually you’re still asleep,” he commented, and Michael scoffed a bit. 

 

“Oi, shush it!” He snapped back. “What’ya need?” 

 

“We wanted to do like a barbeque at our house, and my mama wants me to invite everyone. Especially you, she misses you bad.” Michael smiled to himself.

 

“What time?” he questioned.

 

“12:30. But… we could use your help. Mama wanted to know if you’d be willing to make your salad for us. We have all the ingredients.” Michael sighed melodramatically. 

 

“I’ll be there soon.” 

 

“Thanks! See you later!” Michael rolled his eyes and hung up, before getting up and sliding into the bathroom. He did a quick fix of his hair, before dashing to his room to change. He pulled himself into a pair of blue wash skinny jeans, a vintage Green Day shirt, and a jean jacket filled with patches, including “Love is Love”, “May the Bridges I’ve Burned Light my Path”, “Hands Off”, and a cute patch of a kitten. To finish off what he called his “art hoe” aesthetic, he pulled on his Martins and his beanie, stretching and walking out to his garage, grabbing his keys on his way out. 

 

As he entered the garage, Michael smiled at his moped. He walked over to it slowly, before dusting it off slightly. He turned it on, before opening the garage and pulling on his helmet. He pulled himself out of the garage, closing it behind him and pulling on to the main street. He hummed softly, driving himself over to his friend’s house. Almost before he pulled into the driveway, Zach’s mom was running out of the front door. He parked, getting off the moped and walking over to Daisy, pulling her into a hug. She squeezed him like he would disappear if she let go. 

 

“Oh, Mikey! We missed you so much!” Mike snorted a bit, and she pulled away, patting his cheek. “C’mon in sugar. My husband won’t be home in time for the barbeque, but Shalissa and Rose are here.” As if on cue, the twins came running out of the house screaming and cheering. They damn near tackled Michael, holding onto him tightly. “Girls!” Daisy scolded, and Michael laughed quietly. 

 

“It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” Michael reached down, patting their heads and helping them up from where they were clinging to his knees. They led him inside and to the kitchen, both quickly washing their hands so they could help him prepare his garden salad. Michael gave them their directions, before finding his way around the extremely familiar kitchen. As Michael started chopping veggies, he heard someone walking from down the hallway. 

 

“Hey man!” Zach greeted, and Michael waved, chopping up the lettuce. Zach leaned against the counter, watching him work. “Mama wants you to invite your doctors. She wants to give ‘em her thanks.” Michael smiled a bit, shrugging. 

 

“I don’t know, Dr. Irwin and Mr. Irwin are super busy. I’m not sure Dr. Irwin even goes home. And Luke… I don’t want to weird him out. I don’t want to fast into the relationship cause I’m scared he’ll get distant… I dunno, you know?” Zach smiled at him, patting his back. 

 

“I gotcha. In that case, it’ll just be us and the group.” 

 

“I thought Liv and Ness were out of town this weekend. They were going to some cabin.”

 

“Then it’ll just be us. Boy’s day out!” 

 

“Where the hell would we go?”

 

“I dunno. We could go swimming.” Michael nodded. 

 

“Sounds like a plan.” Together, he and the girls dropped the veggies into a bowl, and he gave it to Rose to mix. While she was mixing, Shalissa helped him make the dressing, and as soon as they finished, they walked out to the backyard, where Daisy was busy grilling away. She smiled at the kids, and nodded towards the ribs that were already ready. Mike allowed everyone else to get some, before grabbing a small rack. She patted his back wordlessly, before continuing her grilling. Michael sat down between the twins, and dug into his plate. 

  
  
  
  
  


After everyone had eaten their fill, Zach and Mike raced to get ready. Zach tossed Mike a pair of swim trunks. 

 

“I’m assuming you didn’t bring yours and we’re about the same size, so you can just borrow these.” Michael thanked him softly, before leaving the room to change in the bathroom. When he came back, Zach was waiting in his trunks and flip flops. The two nodded at each other and walked out, with Zach calling out to his mom to let her know where they were going. 

 

Zach got in the driver’s seat of his truck, stretching a bit, before pushing it into gear and pulling out. The two started driving, and Mike’s eyebrows pulled together as Zach drove past the public pool. 

 

“Where are we going?” 

 

“Lake,” Zach answered, and Michael smiled softly, leaning his head on the window of the old truck, feeling the bumps of the road through the vibrations of the glass. Zach continued driving, glancing over at Michael before shaking his head a bit, continuing the drive in silence, punctuated only by the commenter on the radio. They pulled into the makeshift dirt parking lot at the lake, and Michael hopped out as Zach turned off the truck. Mikey looked around, taking in the view of one of his favorite spots in Australia.

 

The lake was rather large and had crystal clear waters, so clear Michael could see the bottom of the lake from where he was standing. It had a four and a half meter (15 foot) waterfall filtering fresh water into it, and a calm brooke that trickled its way out to a river a couple kilometers down. There were many vibrantly green trees growing on it, and on one of the trees a rope hung, left there by some college kids for everyone to use as a vine to whip themselves into the water. Beside the waterfall were rocks that gave sturdy enough foot holds for the more adventurous to climb. The water itself was about 25 feet deep, and the sounds of animals nesting and living around the lake filled the air. The chirps of the birds and the sounds of the crickets buzzing filled Michael with a sense of nostalgia. 

 

“There’s no one else here,” Mike commented. 

 

“Race you to the water!” Zach interjected, before dashing to the water. Mike giggled to himself, dashing ahead in an attempt to catch up to Zach, despite him being so far ahead it didn’t seem worth it. Michael ended up in the water second , but only by about two seconds. Michael jumped in, the cooling water rushing over his skin. He swam over to Zach, who dunked Michael’s head under. When Michael resurfaced, Zach was already out of the water. Michael cocked his head, watching Zach, who turned back to motion for Michael to follow him. Michael quickly got out of the water, shivering as the now cold feeling air rushed around his damp skin. Zach started climbing the damp, mossy rocks and turned back to Michael. 

  
  


“C’mon, slow poke!” Zach commented, and Michael watched him apprehensively. “Hey, I’ve done this a bunch. I promise there’s nothing to be scared of.” With that, Zach continued climbing, and Michael took a deep breath, following him closely. Zach picked his path carefully, trying to find it in a way that would be easy for Michael to follow. Michael scuttled behind him, his knuckles turning white from how hard he was gripping the rocks. Zach pulled himself over the ledge, before reaching down to pull Michael up. Michael collapsed on the ground, his chest heaving and rolling on his back, turning his head to look at Zach, raising his hand to flip the other boy off. 

 

“That’s the most exercise I’ve ever gotten in my entire life.” 

 

“It wasn’t that bad, was it?” 

 

“It was 25% the climb, 75% the fear” Michael answered, and Zach’s face lit up with laughter. 

 

“You do realise there’s a bunch of high bushes to catch your fall, right?” 

 

“I’d die during the fall”

 

“Not possible” 

 

“I’d have a heart attack out of fear” 

 

“Well you  _ didn’t  _ die, so we’re good.” Michael smiled up at him, and Zach sat down at the edge, taking in the view as his friend swallowed down his fear. Finally, the lilac haired boy sat next to him, looking down with his eyes lit up in fear. Zach nudged his shoulder gently, a kind smile covering his lips. 

 

“Don’t look down, dummy.” Michael rolled his eyes, but raised his chin up anyway. The view was absolutely breathtaking. He could see almost everything. Eventually, Zach pulled himself up, stretching a bit, before grabbing Michael’s hand and helping him up. 

 

“Pretty cool, huh?” He questioned, and Michael nodded enthusiastically. Zach looked down at the wide lake, a smile covering his face. “Now it’s time to get down from here.” Michael’s eyes widened in understanding. 

 

“No! No. No. No.” Zach smiled at him, shrugging. 

 

“Alright, climb down then. But if you do decide to jump, make sure it’s either an absolute perfect dive or a cannon ball. Otherwise, you’ll end up with bruises all over your stomach.” With that, Zach took a running leap off the waterfall, curling himself into a ball as he hurtled towards the water. He hit it with a huge splash, and Michael held his breath. When his friend didn’t immediately surface, he started panicking and pacing back and forth. Just as he was about to try to climb down, Zach’s head burst through the top of the water. He shook his head, sending water flying everywhere, and looked up at Michael. 

 

“Hey! Mikey! Having any luck?” Michael glared at him, before throwing a rock down towards Zach. The rock missed Zach by about nine feet, and Zach started laughing again. “Take your time bud!” He called up, and Michael shook his head. There was no other way down, other than climbing down blind. Michael rubbed his eyes, taking a deep breath, before backing away from the edge. Zach started cheering from down below, and Michael took a running start. As soon as he felt his toes hit the ledge, he pushed himself off of the cliff and curled himself into a tight ball. Michael almost gasped in shock as the icy cold water enclosed him. He forced his eyes open, looking for the light, before finally starting to swim up. When his head broke water, he shook it out and looked around for Zach. Zach was waiting for him by the shore, and Michael swam over to him shakily. 

 

“What a rush, am I right?” And with that, Michael realized exactly how much fun he had had on the way down. Between the time he had jumped off the cliff and the time he hit the water, he loved it. Before and after, he was terrified. Other than that, he was excited. He felt alive. Michael nodded, laying down next to Zach. “Wanna go again?” Zach asked, and Michael shook his head quickly. Zach snorted, rolling his eyes and reaching over to ruffle his hair. Mike sighed softly, laying back and smiling to himself. A blue van pulled up next to Zach’s truck, and Michael looked up as a group of college girls got out, running into the lake. Zach sat up, tapping Michael’s shoulder quickly. Michael glanced at him. 

 

“Close your mouth. You’re attracting flies," Michael commented, and Zach smacked him, his eyebrows raising. He tilted his head towards the guy who just got out of the van. The man was pretty tan, and had hair that was shaved into a sort of pho-hawk. He had gauges in his ears, and tattoos littered his torso and arms. He also had a bit of stubble, not enough to make him look like an alcoholic, but enough to look appealing. Zach leaned into Michael. 

 

“Eye candy for the both of us, yeah?” Michael hit him, glaring at his friend.

 

“Oi! Shut it!” With Michael’s outburst, the dude looked over at Michael, smiling at the boys. A girl came over, pressing a gentle kiss to the guy’s cheek and grabbing his hand, trying to pull him to the water. He shook his head, laughing, and she stomped her foot, then ran to rejoin the group. Instead, he came over to join the other two guys. Sitting down next to Mike, he smiled at them gently. 

 

“Enjoying the view?” he questioned, and the other two answered at the same time. 

 

“Yes,” Zach answered, while Mike answered. 

 

“Eh.” The fellow scoffed. 

 

“Why’s that?” 

 

“I’m super gay.” 

 

“I’m part of the view, you know,” The fellow quipped, and Michael laughed uncomfortably, scooting closer to Zach. The fellow punched Michael’s shoulder, his touch lasting a little longer than necessary. “Don’t worry about it, dude. I’m straight.” Michael nodded, rubbing his arms arm where the guy had touched him. “Yeah, I don’t like guys. I mean they’re nice and all, but like… I’m not into it. Never have been, never will be, heh.” Michael didn’t respond, instead chewing his inner cheek to restrain himself from making a smartass comment. The dude pointed at one of the girls. “That’s my girl, so like, you know I’m straight.” 

 

“We get it,” Zach stepped in before Michael snapped. “You’re straight. So am I. But you’re making my buddy feel weird." The dude’s eyebrows jumped up. 

 

“Oh, shit, sorry. What’s your name?” He asked, and Michael shrugged a bit, looking away. 

 

“Mike.” 

 

“I’m Zach.” The stranger smiled at them warmly. 

 

“Just call me Z,” he responded, and the two friends nodded. The trio sat there in silence, Z and Zach watching the girls and Michael twiddling his thumbs. Michael rested his hands behind him, staring up at the sky to cloud watch. He was enjoying himself, watching the clouds float by and absolutely stretching his imagination to come up with shapes he could see in the vague puffiness of the clouds. As he tried to force a dragon out of the shape of the clouds, he noticed something touching his fingers. He ignored it at first, thinking of it as just a brushing of the hands or a stick he was pressed up against. That is, until foreign fingers started intertwining with his. Michael quickly pulled his hand away from Z, instead resting it in his lap. Z’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“What? Can’t take a joke?” He scoffed, rolling his eyes. 

 

“Is it a joke to try to hold a gay teenager’s hand after you’ve just met him?” 

 

“No need to get snappy.” Z answered, and Michael shook his head. 

 

“Zach, I wanna leave.” Michael demanded, and Zach looked at him in surprise. 

 

“But-” 

 

“Zach.” Michael fixed him with a cold stare, before getting up and trudging to his truck. Michael watched Zach apologize to Z, who let out a loud bark of a laugh, before Zach followed Michael. 

 

“Hey man, what was that about? I think one of them girls was about to give me her number. She was eyeballin’ me like you wouldn’t believe it.” 

 

“Either Z is homophobic or closeted. Whatever it is, he tried to grab my hand and wrote it off as a joke, and got irate with  _ me _ when I didn’t want him holding it. It's like he thinks just because I’m gay I should be at his feet begging to hold his hand or suck his dick or something when in reality? I don’t care for him too much. Not one bit.” Michael crossed his arms, glaring out the window of Zach’s truck. Zach sighed, patting Michael’s leg before returning his hand to the wheel. Michael sighed just a bit. 

 

“I’m sorry. Straight guys are jackasses.” 

 

“You’re a straight guy.” 

 

“Well, I won’t lie, I’m a jackass sometimes.” Michael snorted with laughter, and Zach smiled at him. “I’m glad you’re feeling better. Just let Z slip from your mind, forget about him. You’ll never see him again.” Michael nodded, sighing softly. “Hey, let’s just listen to the radio. Sing off?” Zach challenged, and Michael immediately turned up the radio, throwing his head back and belting his heart out. Zach immediately jumped in, singing about as loud as Michael was. The boys sang all the way home, and when Zach pulled into his driveway Michael got out, stretching. The two raced each other to Zach’s room, Michael beating Zach by about three seconds, and slamming the door behind him, pressing his entire body weight against the door. Zach leaned against the door, and the two were caught in a pushing match. 

 

“Boys! Quit playin with the door!” Daisy called up, and Zach answered. 

 

“Sorry, mama!” Michael pulled away from the door, turning to Zach’s bed and grabbing his clothes, smiling at Zach as he walked in. 

 

“You goin home?” 

 

“After I change, yeah. It’s like four, and I’m full of sand. I gotta go wash myself, dude.” Zach nodded.

 

“You can change in here. I’m going to hop in the shower. I’ll see you later, dude. I’m glad we got to hang today.” Zach saluted him goodbye, before plodding to the bathroom. Michael changed out of Zach’s swim trunks, laying them on Zach’s bed. Michael walked to Daisy’s room, hugging her goodbye before returning to his moped, powering it on and speeding home. 

 

He pulled into his garage, parked the moped, and rushed into the bathroom. He could feel the sand all over him, and he absolutely  _ hated _ it. Michael jumped into the shower, stretching enough to crack his back and relaxing under the warm water. He washed his hair, before putting conditioner in. Letting it sit, he started washing his body, humming quietly. Michael slid down the wall, sitting against it and laying his head back as he allowed his conditioner to sit. Michael chewed on his inner cheek, going over the events of the day, when he realized he hadn’t even texted Luke all day. 

 

When he finally got out of the shower, Michael dried himself off and pulled on his boxers and a worn out sleep shirt. No one else to see today, no need to be all dressed up. Michael walked to his room, plopping into his bed and stretching just a bit before reaching over to his phone, dialing Luke’s number. Luke picked up on the third ring, his enthusiastic voice filtering into the phone. 

 

“Heya, Mikey!” Luke chirped, and Michael smiled into the phone. “Listen, hon, I can’t talk long, I’m dealing with a drunk therapist.” Michael strained his hearing, and realized he could hear sobbing in the background. 

 

“Are they okay?” 

 

“Yeah, he’s fine, just dealing with some stuff. Listen, I think he’s gonna pass out at some point, and as morbid as it sounds, I’ll wait for that then call you back. Is that cool?” Luke asked, and Michael nodded. 

 

“Of course. I hope he feels better, whoever it is.” Michael sighed, hanging up. Sighing, Michael walked downstairs and plopped in front of his tv yet again, this time navigating to his ps4 version of Fortnite. He hummed to himself, rejoining the fray. Of course, he was a little rusty after months of no practice, and was killed almost immediately. He reloaded his game, and continued playing. 

  
  


A couple of hours later, Karen walked in the room with pizza. Michael was up immediately, dashing to the kitchen and greeting her with a kiss on the cheek, before reaching for a slice. She tutted. 

 

“Not yet, sweetheart. Get two glasses down and pour us some milk.” Michael groaned, plodding over to the cupboard and pulling out two cups. He poured his mom a glass of white milk before pouring himself a glass of chocolate, the only milk he could stomach. He sat down at the table next to his mom, digging into the slice that she served for him. Karen asked him about his day, and he launched into a detailed recount of everything that had happened to him. She reacted accordingly, ranging from laughing, to “no!”, to cocking an eyebrow and shaking her head disapprovingly. Michael dodged her hand as it reached out to bat him on the back of the head as he recounted the story of jumping off the waterfall. 

  
  
  


After eating, Michael retreated back to his room, pulling out his sketchbook, going through the pages and tearing out any of them that had references to Rob. He threw the pages away, before returning to the sketch of Luke that he had started while he was in the rehab center. He continued the picture, not from memory but rather from the outline that he had already completed. Michael just needed to finish doubling the lining and shading. The only color he was thinking of adding was blue to Luke’s eyes, in order to capture exactly how bright they were. Other than that, the picture was to be grey and white. 

 

Michael had just finished the double lining when his phone lit up with ringing. Michael reached over, accepting the call and humming into the phone. 

 

“Hey, whatcha up to? Did I wake you?” Luke questioned, and Michael shook his head. 

 

“It’s only like seven.” 

 

“Mikey, it’s midnight.” Michael glanced at his clock. 

 

“Whoops. I got carried away drawing.” 

 

“Well, what’d ya do today? Yesterday, I guess.” Luke snorted. Michael smiled into the phone. 

 

“I jumped off a cliff” 

 

“Ha, ha. Very funny.”

 

“No! I’m serious! At the lake I jumped off the waterfall into the water with Zach and then a buncha people came and there was a really creepy guy. Either that or homophobic, I dunno, but he tried holding my hand as a ‘joke’. I hated it  _ sooo  _ much!” Luke frowned softly. 

 

“I’m sorry hun.” 

 

“Hey, what about that therapist? Is he okay?” Luke sighed into the phone. 

 

“Well, he threw up and fell asleep on my couch. But I hope he’ll feel better in the morning.”

 

“Who is it?” Mikey questioned. 

 

“Mr. Irwin. Calum. He, uh. He’s been dealing with some stuff and he can’t really talk to Ashton about it.” Michael chewed on his inner cheek, before sighing. 

 

“I wish I could help somehow.” 

 

“Actually, I can’t really leave him, but he’s gonna have a killer hangover in the morning. If you  have a way here, could you bring some medicine and some ground coffee?” 

 

“Yeah, of course. Just text me your address.”

 

“I’ll send it to you later.” Luke heaved a huge sigh into the phone. “I’m sorry I didn’t call. I was pretty busy.” 

 

“Don’t worry about it. I was busy too, getting hit on by creepy college guys.” 

 

“Technically I’m college age, so are you talking about me?” 

 

“Quite obviously, yes.” Michael answered. “Are you ever gonna go to college?” 

 

“I don’t think so. I’m really happy with where I am. You know? I enjoy my job. I get to enjoy the musical perspective  _ and _ I get to help people. I music and I love helping people. It’s a perfect job.” Luke grinned into the phone. “Also, I’ve got a pretty damn cute boyfriend from the job.” Michael’s face lit up red. 

 

“B-boyfriend?” 

 

“Yeah, if you’re cool with that.” Michael cleared his throat, his back straightening. 

 

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, I’m cool. I’m-” Luke laughed into the phone. 

 

“Dork.” 

 

“Shut up.” 

 

“No, you.” Luke shot back. Michael rolled his eyes, laying back in his bed. He yawned softly, smiling into the phone. 

 

“I’m gonna die of exhaustion. Goodnight, Lukey.” 

 

“Night, Mikey.” And with that, Michael hung up. 


	16. Chapter 16

Michael woke up around 11 the next morning to his phone ringing beside him. He sighed, reaching over to it and answering it. Luke’s voice filtered through the phone. 

 

“Hey hon! He woke up and he’s trying to get me to let him leave to get more booze. He’s trying to claim it’ll help his hangover. Are you on your way?” Michael sighed softly, rubbing his eyes. 

 

“I just woke up, but I can probably be there in fifteen minutes.” 

 

“Alright, I’ll send you my address. Thank you, again. This means the world to me.” MIchael nodded a bit, before wishing Luke goodbye and hanging up. He got himself up, pulling on the same ensemble he had on yesterday, before rushing down to the kitchen. He grabbed his keys, opening the cupboard and grabbing his mom’s pain meds and a thing of coffee. He put them into a backpack to make carrying it easier, then walked out to the garage where his ride was waiting. He pulled out of the garage while looking at his phone, finding a quick way for him to get there. As soon as he figured it out, he pulled into the street and sped off. 

 

Michael arrived at Luke’s in record time, parking on the street and walking in the building, walking to the apartment that Luke had specified in his text. Michael knocked on the door a couple times, before standing back and stretching. The door flew open to a disheveled Luke. His normally half taken care of hair was an absolute mess, he had bags under his eyes, and he was wearing nothing but boxers and a shirt for a band Michael hadn’t heard of. He had slippers on his feet, but his smile lit his entire face up. 

 

“Hey, Mikey!” He greeted, and Michael noticed the smell of eggs, accompanied by the sizzling sound of bacon. “C’mon in!” Michael kissed his cheek as he walked in, looking around the flat with a wide grin. 

 

“Nice place!” Michael mentioned, and Luke scratched the back of his neck. 

 

“Thanks. Here, I’ll take the coffee and make it for Calum later. I’ll give you a glass of water and you can go try to get him to take the pain meds. I’m pretty sure he’s still a little tipsy, but he’s no danger.” Michael nodded as Luke grabbed the coffee, vanishing into his kitchen and reappearing with a bottle of water. Luke smiled at the smaller boy. “Thanks again for everything. I owe you one.” Michael shrugged in response. “He’s staying in the guest room in the back. Just go straight down the hallway.” Michael looked down the hallway, smiling up at Luke before walking down. As Michael entered the dark room, he noticed the windows had blankets over them to help block out the light. His eyes adjusted rather quickly, and he closed the door behind him gently. He glanced around the room, noticing a lump under blankets on the bed. Michael sat down next to him as softly as he could. Michael spoke so quietly it was basically a breath of words. 

 

“Hey, Mr. Irwin.” Calum groaned, grabbing a pillow and pulling it over his head. “I brought you some painkillers. They’ll help you feel better,” Michael comforted, patting his shoulder. Calum slowly sat up, pulling his eyes to meet Michaels. Even through the dim light, he could see the flushed cheeks and tear streaks on the dignified man’s face. Calum reached forward, pushing his hand into Michael’s face. 

 

“Who is it?” He whispered. 

 

“It’s Mike,” the lilac haired boy responded, and Calum plopped back down, curling in on himself. 

 

“I can’t believe a 17 year old is having a better fuckin love life than I am.” 

 

“Mr. Irwin?” 

 

“Stop calling me that. My name is Calum.” 

 

“Alright, Calum, you should take these. They’ll help you feel better.” 

 

“Don’t tell me what to do.”

 

“You’re acting like a child.”

 

“No! You are!” 

 

“I will shove these pills down your damn throat.” Finally Calum sat up, sighing and grabbing the pills from the younger boy and downing them with the water. 

 

“Now go away. I wanna be alone.” Michael’s jaw tightened, before shaking his head and getting up. 

 

“Sleep well,” he snarked, before closing the door behind him. On the other side of the door, Michael sighed, walking back to the kitchen. 

 

“Was he being an asshole?” Luke questioned, and Michael nodded. “Yeah, he’s a cranky drunk. He doesn’t mean it though, I hope you know that.” 

 

“Yeah,” Michael sighed, “It just irritated me. You know, I come all the way over here, and he couldn’t treat me with any decency at all.” 

 

“I know, I’m sorry. He’s not like that, you know that.” 

 

“I do. I can forgive him, but let me be irate for now.” Luke’s eyebrow shot up, a small smile covering his face. 

 

“Irate? Fancy.” 

 

“Oi, shut it.” Michael shot back, and Luke barked out a laugh, throwing his arm over Michael’s shoulder. He led Michael into the kitchen, setting him at the table. Michael accepted the heaping plate Luke sat in front of him, as well as the cup of apple juice Luke poured. “How’d you know I liked apple juice?” 

 

“It’s what you drank almost 24/7 at the program.” Michael nodded, digging into his food as Luke sat next to him. “I assumed since you were rushing to get here you wouldn’t stop for breakfast, so I decided to have it ready for you when you got here.” Michael’s face was overtaken by a goofy grin. 

 

“You’re so sweet.” He fake swooned into his older counterpart’s arms, who caught him with a hearty laugh, leaning down to press a kiss to Michael’s head. Michael shook his head a bit with a small laugh. Michael continued shoveling food into his mouth, and Luke ate as fast as Mikey did, silently challenging him to a race. Michael met Luke’s eyes, ducking his head down and eating as fast as he could get himself to. Luke picked up his speed, watching Mikey out of the corner of his eye. Michael finished first, standing up with his arms thrown up in the air in victory. 

 

He swallowed his final bite, grabbing his plate and starting the walk to the sink. Before he even took a step, Luke had snatched the plate from him and walked to the sink. 

 

“You cooked! I should clean.” 

 

“Too bad.” 

 

“Luke!”

 

“No, I’m doing the dishes.” Michael huffed, stomping his foot. “Hey, you can go to the living room and pick something to watch. I’ll join you soon enough.” Michael rolled his eyes, walking to the living room and laying down on the couch, grabbing the remote and flipping through the channels. Not long after, he could hear the sounds of a dishwasher being started and Like walked back to his living room, plopping next to Michael and pulling him into a tight hug, Michael’s hair tickling Luke’s neck. Luke nuzzled his nose into Michael’s shoulder, his arms locking around Mike’s stomach and pressing a gentle kiss to his shoulder blade. Michael lied his head back, humming quietly and continuing through the channels. 

 

“Does Adventure Time work?” Michael questioned, and Luke nodded a bit, watching the show over Mikey’s shoulder. Mike’s hand reached back, ruffling Luke’s hair, who snorted a bit, continuing to press small kisses to Mike’s shoulders. After about two episodes of Luke’s gentle kisses, Michael flipped himself around, sitting on Luke’s lap and looking up at him, the two almost ending up nose to nose. Luke smiled at him. 

 

“Hey. You come here often?” Michael tilted his head a bit, as if he was thinking, before shaking his head. 

 

“Can’t say I do.” 

 

“You should.” 

 

“Why’s that?” 

 

“I mean, you’re a pretty damn cute guy. I’d love to see you around more.” 

 

“You’re comin’ on kinda strong. I don’t think my boyfriend would like that too much,” Michael shot back, pursing his lips and shaking his head. 

 

“Hm. What kinda guy is he?” 

 

“He’s a huge dork who’s trying to get me to blow his head full of air.” 

 

“Damn. I’ve been caught.” Mikey giggled softly as Luke grabbed the back of his neck, pulling him into a chaste kiss. Michael’s hands found Luke’s shoulders, absolutely melting into the older man’s gentle grip. Luke’s hands dropped down to Michael’s waist, pulling him closer just a bit. Michael’s fingers found their way into Luke’s mussed up hair, running his hands through the delicate blond strands. Luke’s fingers trailed up Mikey’s side, running over the exposed skin of Mikey’s belly. A shiver ripped through Michael’s body, goosebumps popping up under Luke’s touch. Luke licked across Michael’s bottom lip, waiting patiently for permission. Michael hesitated for a second, before parting his lips slightly. He shivered yet again, feeling the foreign presence of Luke’s tongue entering his mouth. Michael held a tighter grip of Luke’s hair as Luke started exploring his younger counterpart’s mouth. A small whine sounded from Michael, and Luke hummed quietly. They had completely forgotten the reason Michael came over in the first place, until a voice sounded from the hallway. 

 

“Gross.” Calum commented, and the two jumped apart from each other, Michael’s face completely red and Luke smiling shyly. “I come out here to get some coffee and I get a face full of teenage hormones.” 

 

“Are you feeling better?” Michael questioned, and Calum shot him a tired grin. 

 

“I will be. Thanks Mikey.” Calum responded, and Luke jumped to his feet as the older man tried to walk to the kitchen. 

 

“Go sit down, I’ll make coffee.” 

 

“Luke-”

 

“You’ll sit down or I’ll make Michael sit on you.” 

 

“You’ll put a feather of a boy in my lap.” 

 

“Hey! I’m not a feather!” Michael exclaimed, and Calum snorted with laughter, before plopping on the couch. Luke went to his kitchen, grabbing the coffee Michael had brought and starting a fresh pot. As he walked back to the living room to wait for the drink to brew, he heard a knock at his front door. Luke opened the door, being met with a site he never thought he’d live to see. Dr. Irwin, completely broken down. 

 

“Calum didn’t come home last night.” Ashton spoke quietly, his eyes half closed, seemingly dragged down by his problems. 

 

“He’s here.” 

 

“Can I please see him?”

 

“I just- I don’t know if that would be good for him right now.” Ashton’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“He’s my husband, Luke.”

 

“He spent all night trying to drink the entirety of my liquor supply. He downed an entire bottle of scotch, Ash.” Ashton’s head fell into his hands. 

 

“Please.” The doctor pleaded, and Luke glanced behind him to where Michael and Calum were sitting together on the couch. 

 

“Alright,” Luke finally relented, and stepped aside to let him in. Ashton stepped inside the apartment, all conversation falling silent as soon as Calum caught sight of him. Luke excused himself to the kitchen under the guise of getting some coffee, but Michael was stuck in the suffocating tension between the two. 

 

“Cal,” Ashton called out, his voice cracking. 

 

“Why aren’t you at work? Huh?” Calum shot back, his arms crossed across his chest. 

 

“I- uh. I listened to what you said. I hired someone to take nights and weekends.” 

 

“You told me it was a dumb idea. That you couldn’t leave because the patients needed you.”

 

“I know I did, Cal. And I’m so sorry.” Calum’s eyes narrowed, watching the doctor. “I wanna fix us. That’s my top priority right now.” Luke popped his head out from the kitchen. 

 

“Hey, Mikey. I need your help.” Michael practically darted out of his seat, relieved to get out of the room. Calum fixed Ashton with an icy glare. 

 

“Calum, we’ve been married for seven years. Together for ten. I’ve had my fair share of fuck ups, and a lot of them have been worse than this-” 

 

“Worse than this?!” Calum snapped. “You’ve been completely ignoring me for over a month! You fucking forgot our goddamn anniversary. We literally got married on the same day of the year that we started dating so we only had to remember one date! And you couldn’t even do that!” Calum ran a hand through his hair, and Ash just watched silently. “I was considering finally starting a damn family with you, but how the hell can I bring a child into our house when you can’t even pay attention to your husband? That’d be so unfair to the kid.” 

“Calum-” 

 

“And another thing! It’s not like I fuckin ask for much! I just want you to come home at night. To pretend like you  _ want _ to spend time with me. And yet, I’m always supposed to be there for you! When you don’t understand something with a patient and need someone to listen to your theories, it’s  _ me _ . When a patient falls behind and you feel like it’s your fault? I’m the fuckin one who’s reassuring you and redrafting a new care plan for the patient. And you can’t even meet me at a restaurant.” Ashton watched him, nodding just a bit, before reaching over to grab Calum’s hand. Calum went to snatch it away, but he noticed just how terrible Ashton looked. Calum remained quiet as his husband spoke softly. 

 

“I know I haven’t been there for you. And I’m so sorry. I promise you that’ll change. You mean so much to me, and I don’t want to lose you. I  _ can’t _ lose you. Just… just give me another chance.” Ashton intertwined his fingers between his husband’s, who was slowly starting to calm down. 

 

“I miss you Ash. I miss you so damn much.” And with that, all the tension left Calum’s shoulders and face, and he collapsed into Ashton’s arms. Ashton held the smaller man close, patting his back gently and sighing into his shoulder. 

 

Michael walked back into the living room, carrying two cups of coffee with Luke close behind, holding another two. Michael set his cups in front of the two men, before sitting down next to Luke, curling into his side and grabbing his cup, filled with sugar, chocolate, whip cream, and but a splash of coffee. Luke draped an arm around Mike’s shoulders, looking at the two. 

 

“Are you guys feeling better?” He questioned, and Calum shrugged. 

 

“I still have a headache, and I’m still a little upset, but we’ll be okay.” Ashton nodded, still clinging on to Calum’s hand for dear life. As if he thought that if he let go, Calum would leave forever. “Thank you for letting me stay here.” 

 

“I didn’t really have a choice, did I?” Luke laughed. “When you got here you were already a fuckin mess. I couldn’t let you drive like that.” Calum looked down, shrugging. Ashton looked between the two younger men. 

 

“You two doing well?” Luke ran his fingertips gently along the back of Michael’s neck, nodding a bit. 

 

“I think we’re doing just fine. All smooth, other than Mike’s friend trying to kill me,” Luke commented, and Michael shrugged. 

 

“Just fine my ass!” Calum cut in. “I walked in on them fuckin snogging. It made my headache terrible.” Michael turned completely red, laughing softly. Luke shrugged slightly, raising an eyebrow. 

 

“We’re teenagers, Cal. What do you expect?” 

 

“A little decency would be nice.” Calum shot back, and Ashton laughed, leaning up to press a kiss to Calum’s cheek. 

 

“It’s not like we were fuckin. Also, it’s my damn house.” Luke answered, and Michael stared at the ground, scratching the back of his head. Luke pressed a small kiss to Michael’s head, who continued drinking his “coffee”. With that, Ashton stood up, pulling Calum gently up with him. 

 

“We have a make-up date. Reservations soon, and I have to go clean myself up. Calum, you can come if you want. I won’t blame you if you don’t,” Ashton mentioned, and Calum nodded a bit, waving goodbye to the two boys, following his husband out. Luke got up, grabbing their cups and rinsing them out, setting them in the sink before returning to Michael, who had already found a new cuddle buddy by the name of Billie Joe. Luke smiled, watching Mikey play with his cat, before looking back up at the older man. 

 

“I hope you know I’m now only with you for your cat.” 

 

“That sounds fair enough.” Luke responded, sitting next to his boyfriend. He pressed a gentle kiss to the corner of Mike’s lips, smiling at him. 

 

“Are you ever gonna stop kissing me?” 

 

“When you stop being so damn cute. So, no. Never.” Michael lit up red, pushing Luke’s chest gently. Luke laughed, pulling him into his arms and hummed into his ear gently. Michael’s head fell back against Luke’s shoulder, smiling up at him and pressing a kiss to Luke’s jaw. Luke sighed contently, running his thumb over Michael’s lips. 

 

“So pretty, hun. So damn pretty.” Luke spoke quietly, and Michael looked back at him with fondness dancing in his eyes. As Luke leaned in to press another kiss to Michael’s lips, the younger boy’s phone lit up with a call. Michael groaned reaching over to answer his phone. 

 

“Hello? Hey mom. Yeah, I’m at Luke’s. I did. Yeah, I’ve got your meds. He needed some. Okay. Yeah. Yeah, I’ll be home soon. I love you too. Bye mom,” Michael ended the call, and smiled regretfully at Luke. “My mom needs her meds, so I’m gonna head home.” Luke nodded, and Michael got up, breaking himself from Luke’s grip. He leant down gently, pressing a small kiss to Luke’s head, before grabbing his shoes, keys, and bag and walking out. Michael adjusted his collar at the unnatural heat in the hallway, before going down to where he had parked. Michael started his moped, driving off.

  
  
  


When he got home, he noticed an extra car in his driveway. Mikey pulled into his garage, parking his moped and walking in the door. 

 

“Mom?” Michael called, and he walked through the house, trying to find his mom. When he stepped into the living room, he noticed lit candles and his mom. “Hey, I brought your pain meds.” Karen looked up at him, patting the couch next to her. 

 

“I didn’t really need my pain meds. I just need to talk to you.” Michael sat down next to his mom, who grabbed his hand gently. “You remember how your father walked out on us, right?”

 

“That’s a great way to start a conversation.” 

 

“Mikey.” His mom shot him a look, and Michael sighed. 

 

“Yeah. I remember.” 

 

“I’m- Well, Mikey,” his mom started, and Michael started chewing on his inner cheek. “I’m seeing someone else.” Michael’s face lit up with a grin. 

 

“Mom, that’s great! I’m so happy for you.” Karen smiled for a bit, shaking her head. 

 

“You don’t know who it is yet.” Michael’s eyebrows pulled together, and suddenly a familiar voice sounded from the kitchen. 

 

“Hey, hon! Do you want yellow or red onions in your soup?” 

 

“Yellow please. The red onions are Michael’s.” Karen responded, and Michael lent into his mom. 

 

“Fuckin Principal Trenton?” He questioned, and Karen gasped. 

 

“Michael! Language!” 

 

“You’re with my principal!” 

 

“Jeff’s a great guy, Mikey. You’ve gotta give him a chance.” 

 

“It’s so gross!” 

 

“He’s a human too.” 

 

“He’s got a goatee, mom.” Karen laughed a bit, shaking her head. 

 

“He likes it.” 

 

“No one else does.”

 

“I do.” Karen shot back, and Mikey groaned. 

 

“It’s so weird!” 

 

“I know. But… he makes me happy.” Michael’s eyes found his mothers. “We’ve been seeing each other for about five months, and… He was there for me when you were in rehab. He was here for me. And… I think I deserve some happiness too. Right?” Her eyes were silently pleading with him, and Michael sighed. 

 

“Fine. But if he starts acting all chummy chummy at school I’m gonna pretend like I don’t know him.” 

 

“Think of it like this, you get to call your principal Jeff instead of Pr. Trenton! Doesn’t that give you some, like, street cred at school?” 

 

“Mom, never say street cred again.” She laughed, pushing his shoulder gently. 

 

“You know I’m kidding around. You should meet him. For real, as a person, not as a principal or authority figure.” And as if on cue, Principal Trenton rounded the corner. 

 

“Mr. Clifford!” Karen shot him a look, and he cleared his throat. “Michael, I mean. Hey. So, I uh. I guess you know about us now.” Michael nodded, watching Jeff closely. “I, uh. I hope we don’t don’t bother you too much.” 

 

“Yeah, it’s a little gross, but I’ll allow it.” Jeff laughed quietly, patting Michael’s back. 

 

“Thank you for being a good sport. How you feeling? I haven’t seen you since I sent you home with Mr. Hemmings.” Michael shrugged a bit, Jeff sitting down on the chair near the couch. 

 

“I’m fine. I was actually just at his house.”

 

“You were- You were at a workers house?” Jeff questioned, concern sparking in his gaze. 

 

“They’re together,” Karen cut in, and Jeff frowned a bit, before nodding in response. 

 

“How old is he? Mr. Hemmings.” 

 

“Luke’s 18. I’m almost 18, so it’s not like anything illegal or bad is going on.” Jeff nodded a bit. “Why are you so concerned about it?” 

 

“Well, you’re my student. I care about all my students. On top of that, you’re basically the center of your mother’s life. I wanna make sure you’re safe, if not for me, then for her,” Jeff answered, and Michael shrugged a bit, looking away. “Listen, we’ve only been together for five months, and I understand you’ve only known about us for about five minutes. But I want you to know that you can always come to me. I know you had a rough relationship with your father,” Jeff started, and Michael tensed up, his eyes narrowing, “but I promise I’ll never be anything like that. I’m here for your mother, and I’m here for you. I hope you can understand that.” Michael nodded a bit, staring at the floor with a blank expression, then he took a deep breath and stood up. 

 

“You guys have fun. I’m gonna go see if Liam is busy or not.” Karen nodded, pressing a kiss to Michael’s cheek, before he walked up to his room and plopped in his bed. He pulled out his phone, typing in Liam’s name to get to his contact and pressing call. Liam picked up rather quickly. 

 

“Hey man! Did you hear?” Michael’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“Hear what?” 

 

“Niall’s out!!” Liam exclaimed, and Michael smiled a bit. 

 

“You’re kidding.”

 

“No! He’s finally freeeee!” Liam whooped into the phone, but Michael was frowning. 

 

“What about Ashley? She’s all alone now.” 

 

“I’m sure she’ll be out soon. She can take care of herself. She’s strong, you know?” Michael nodded a bit. “Anyway, I was about to call you. Niall and I both have Friday afternoons free. Would you be willing to start rehearsals?” Michael’s face lit up with a grin. 

 

“Yeah! Fridays sound great!” He responded, and Liam smiled into the phone.

 

“Sounds great, I’ll see you then.” With that, Liam hung up, and Michael pulled his phone to his chest. Remembering it’s a school night, he glanced at the clock. It was already 9:34, and Michael would be heading to bed soon. With that, he pulled out his phone and dialled Luke’s number. 

 

“Hey Luke!” He greeted as soon as Luke picked up. 

 

“Hey hon. Are you going to sleep soon? You have school tomorrow.” 

 

“Oh shit sorry, mom, I meant to call my  _ boyfriend _ ,” Michael teased, and Luke snorted, rolling his eyes. 

 

“I’m so tired, how aren’t you?” 

 

“You were up all night dealing with a drunk therapist, remember?” 

 

“How could I forget?” Luke questioned, and Michael laughed quietly. “Hey, we probably won’t be able to see each other much this week. You’ll have school and I have work, but I was hoping on Saturday we’d be able to go see my parents. I know it might be weird for you to sit in a room of four people that you don’t know and who can’t talk, but I just want you to meet them. It would mean a lot to me.” Michael hummed into the phone. 

 

“Of course! I’ll make sure that we get the whole day so you can take as long as you need.” Luke breathed a sigh of relief, smiling into the phone. 

 

“Thank you, sugar. I have to get up early for work, and you have to get up earlier for school, so we better head to bed.” 

 

“I don’t wanna head to bed,” Michael shot back, and Luke shook his head. 

 

“Fine, but I’m going to bed. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Michael smiled softly into the phone. 

 

“Goodnight, Lukey.” 

 

“Goodnight, Mikey.”


	17. Chapter 17

Michael dragged himself out of bed the next day, sighing to himself and turning off his alarm clock. He stumbled down the stairs, reaching the bottom with a tired groan and plodding to the kitchen. Before anything else, he gulped down a Xenoren pill with a bottle of water. Karen wasn’t up yet, so he grabbed his favourite cereal and poured himself a heaping bowl. Michael sat at the table after pouring himself milk, digging into his breakfast. Michael hummed quietly, pulling out his phone and sending a quick text to his friends. 

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Ness, Zach**

**From: Mikey**

**hey since im back are u still gonna give me rides? <3**

 

He jumped slightly as he got an almost immediate response. 

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Mikey, Ness, Zach**

**From: Liv**

**new fone who dis?**

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Ness, Zach**

**From: Mikey**

**haha fuck you. will you?**

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Mikey, Zach**

**From: Ness**

**of course dude. saving the environment 1 carpool at a time :)**

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Mikey, Ness**

**From: Zach**

**Stop blowing up my phone with notifications. I’m sleepin.**

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Mikey, Zach**

**From: Ness**

**if ur not ready when i get to ur house im leaving you**

 

Michael rolled his eyes as he set down his phone, quickly finishing his meal and jumping up to rinse his dish and place it in the dishwasher. Michael dashed upstairs, ignoring the constant buzzing of his phone as Ness and Zach undoubtedly bickered, instead sliding into his bathroom to start fixing up his hair. He closed the door behind him gently, getting some water and running his fingers through his hair delicately, humming to himself. He quickly brushed his teeth, making dumb faces in the mirror at himself, before snorting and spitting out his toothpaste. As he exited the bathroom, he passed by his mom walking towards the kitchen. 

 

“Michael! Did you take your meds?” 

 

“Yes ma!”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“ _ Yes,  _ mom!” Michael shut the door to his room behind him, pulling himself out of his sleep shirt and instead changing into a white tee with the black outline of a rose with an olive bomber jacket over it. Michael’s eyes drifted over his selection of pants, before pulling out a pair of black skinny jeans, pulling them up over his thighs and wiggling his hips in. Topping off the outfit, per usual, were his trusty Timbs. 

 

Plopping down on his bed, he finally pulled out his phone and caught himself up with the text messages. As he finished up reading the “argument” between Zach and Ness, a new text came through. 

 

**To: THA BEST GROUP CHAT EVERRRRRRRR!!!**

**> Liv, Mikey, Zach**

**From: Ness**

**we here @ mike. zach, get ready, youre the last stop on the way to school :)**

 

Michael grabbed his bag and dashed down the stairs, pressing a kiss to his mom’s cheek and ran outside. He took his unspoken official spot in the back passenger’s side of Ness’ blue sedan, his knees pressing into the seat that Liv got every morning. Ness leaned back to give him a fist bump, and Liv immediately started filling Michael in about the girls’ weekend at the cabin. Michael hummed quietly, half listening as he pulled out his phone, sending a quick text to Luke wishing him a good day.

 

Ness pulled into Zach’s driveway, and he walked out with his bag hanging off one of his shoulders. When he reached the car door, Ness put the car in reverse and pulled away from him. Zach’s eyebrow shot up and he went for the door again, and Ness pulled back more. This continued until Ness was halfway out into the street, before she finally let him in. He got in, leaning forward to shove his middle fingers in Ness’ vision. 

 

“Hey, dummy, I gotta drive!” Ness exclaimed, and Zach laughed loudly, leaning back and buckling himself in. 

 

“How was your weekend?” Liv asked, and before Michael could answer, Zach cut in. 

 

“I made Michael jump off a cliff.” 

 

“Why?” Liv asked, looking back at him.

 

“I tricked him into climbing the waterfall that goes into Lake Allister and he had no other way down.” 

 

“It was fun,” Michael commented, “until that creepy guy came.”

 

“Yeah, but he was with some  _ fiiiine _ ladies, am I right?”

 

“I mean, they were cute, sure,” Michael answered, and Zach laughed quietly. 

 

“Gayass.” 

 

“That’s me!” Liv answered, with Michael exclaiming, “That’s my name, don’t wear it out!” The two laughed at their shared reaction, with Ness giggling quietly. Zach threw his head back, groaning loudly, and Liv leaned forward to turn up the radio. As the first song came on, all of the occupants of the car threw their heads back, singing at the top of their lungs. 

 

The drive to school was relatively short, and Ness whipped her car into the spot reserved for her. The four got out of the car, grabbing their respective bags and walking into the building, Michael yawning and stretching. Almost as soon as they stepped inside, Michael was alerted to Pr. Trenton’s presence. 

 

“Michael!” He belted joyfully from his office, and Michael ducked his head, his eye twitching. “C’mere, I need to talk to you.” Michael’s friends looked at him with confusion dancing in their eyes.

 

“Are you in trouble?” Ness asked.

 

“Why did he call you by your name? He usually calls us by our last names.” Zach questioned, and Liv’s head was cocked to the side. Michael heaved a heavy sigh, walking into Pr. Trenton’s office. Jeff closed the door behind Michael, and sat down across from him. 

 

“Is this daily tea time now that I know you’re with my mom?” Michael questioned dryly, and Jeff laughed loudly. 

 

“No, I just need to talk to you about Mr. Grisland.” Michael clenched his fist.

 

“What about Rob?” 

 

“Luke informed me that Mr. Grisland- Rob, that is- was who led you to your breakdown on Friday. He said you didn’t want him in a lot of trouble, so I’ve decided to ask you what you thought Mr. Grisland deserves,” Jeff explained, and Michael’s eyebrows pulled together. 

 

“You want me to pick out a punishment?”

 

“If that’s what you would like. If you don’t want to, I’ll come up with one myself.” Michael sighed, his head finding his hands, before mulling it over. “Take as much time as you need, Mikey.” 

 

“Don’t call me that. Only my friends and my mom call me that.” 

 

“Of course, I’m sorry.” And when Michael looked up at Jeff, he could tell Jeff was genuinely sorry. Frown lines had appeared at the corner of his mouth, and his eyebrows were pinched in the middle. Michael took a deep breath. 

 

“I want him transferred out of my gen foods class. I don’t want him to be able to talk to me at all. I want him to get in a bunch of trouble if he tries approaching me, I just want him to leave me alone. And,” Michael sighed, staring at his feet, “I guess it wouldn’t hurt for like a three day detention or something like that.” Jeff nodded, watching the younger boy. 

 

“That sounds like a plan. I’ll let his homeroom teacher know. You’re free to go if you like.” Almost as soon as the words left Jeff’s mouth, Michael was already up, waving over his shoulder and running to the music wing. He rushed down the stairs and walked into the practice room that was claimed by his friends in the mornings. 

 

“Hey, what was that about?” Liv asked, interrupting whatever conversation they were having before Michael walked in. 

 

“He just wanted to know how he thought Rob should be punished.” 

 

“Why did he call you by your name? As Zach pointed out, he only ever calls us by our last names,” Ness’ eyebrow raised as she asked the second sentence, and Michael shook his head. 

 

“I dunno. Maybe it was just a slip up?” He responded, and the other three nodded. 

 

“That was probably it. What did you decide for Rob’s punishment?” Zach asked, before adding, “Did it include me kicking his ass?” Michael broke out into a fit of giggles. 

 

“Of course not. Just some detention and him being transferred out of my class.” 

 

“He doesn’t deserve that. He deserves to be shoved in a sewer.” Ness commented. 

 

“He deserves to have to work for Trump,” Liv spat, and Zach snorted. 

 

“He’d probably enjoy that,” He put in, and Michael shook his head. 

 

“He hated Trump. Said no one would catch him dead in America as long as that, what did he call it?” Michael paused for a second to think. “That cheeto with EZ Cheez hair ruled the White House.” Ness snorted. 

 

“I hate the dude, but he’s got a sense of humor.” 

 

“Hey! Stop normalizing him! We don’t like him in this household,” Zach shot, and Liv rolled her eyes. 

 

“It’s a practice room,” she retorted, and Zach groaned. 

 

“It’s a meme!” 

 

“What? A may-may?” 

 

“No, grandma, a  _ meme! _ ” 

 

“I love me-me’s!” Ness joined in, and Zach turned to Michael for help. 

 

“C’mon, guys gotta stick together!” Zach pleaded, and Michael pretended to consider his pleas.

 

“You said you need help defending what? A mee-nee? What happened to your knee?” Zach fell to the ground in defeat, his head finding the comfort of his folded up arms, and the laughter of his friends echoed around him.

 

“All I can hear is this cruel laughter, that of my tormentors, my torturers, my-” as Zach continued lamenting, Michael noticed he had gotten a text from Luke. 

 

**From: Luke :)**

**To: Mikey**

**You too, sugar xx**

 

Michael’s face turned red, smiling at the text. Liv immediately noticed his lack of attention, and plopped next to him. 

 

“Oooh! A text from your Romeo?” As she leaned in to read it, Michael locked his screen. 

 

“Keep your nose out of my texts!” Michael exclaimed, honking her nose before pushing her away gently. 

 

“Keep your texts out of my nose!” Liv shot back, and Michael rolled his eyes, laughing quietly.

 

“-fake family, my friends-turned-enemies, my friendemies, my no longer amigos, meine nicht Freunde, my… shit, what’s the word for friend in Italian?” Zach looked up at Ness, who answered without looking up from her phone. 

 

“Stop being a drama queen.” 

 

“This is important to me!” Zach shot back, and Michael hummed quietly. 

 

“None of us know Italian.”

 

“Do you know how to use google translate?” Zach’s eyebrow cocked. “Boom. Argument defeated.”

 

“Do you  _ not _ know how to use translate?” Michael’s opposite eyebrow rose, watching Zach bemusedly as his face crumbled, realizing his argument had fallen apart. 

 

“ _ Fuck _ ,” Zach spoke quietly, “I’m questioning my existence.” 

 

“Well you better finish that up soon, cause the five minute bell is gonna ring in 5...4...3...2...1…” Liv looked up as she finished her countdown, the room falling silent. The time passed, and the time passed, and the time passed. About thirty seconds later, the bell finally rang, and she shouted over the bell. “1! I got it right, no one can say otherwise!” Before the other two could respond, Liv got up and grabbed Michael’s arm, pulling him out of the room and to their first class of the day. 

 

Michael plopped into his seat next to the window, pulling out his notebook and flipping it open to his last page of notes. Once he was all set up for class, he pulled out his phone to scroll through his messages with Luke, his face lighting up with a radiant smile. Out of nowhere, a perfectly manicured hand reached down to grab his phone, snatching it out of his relaxed grip. 

 

“Hey!” Michael exclaimed as Trinity walked up to the front of the room. 

 

“Luke,  _ smiley emoticon? _ ” Trinity asked, disgust filling her voice. “Don’t you know how to use emojiiiiiis?” Michael crossed his arms, staring at his feet. 

 

“I don’t like them.” 

 

“Of course you don’t. You’re too iiiiiiiin to your iiiiiiiiindie hiiiiiiiipster bullshiiiit,” Trinity shot back, and Michael rolled his eyes. 

 

“Give me back my phone.”

 

“IIIIII thiiiink not, cutiiiie. Who iiiiiis Luke?” Michael’s cheeks turned red, half of embarrassment, half of anger. 

 

“None of your business.”

 

“Hm…” Trinity continued scrolling through their conversation until she found a picture of him. “Oh my… Miiiiikey-”

 

“Don’t call me that,” Michael interjected, but Trinity kept talking as if he had never said anything. 

 

“-he’s sooooo cute! How diiiiid you ever triiiiick hiiiim into like, liiiiking you?” 

 

“I didn’t trick him.”

 

“IIIIIIs iiiiiit magiiiiic?” She covered her mouth with her hands, gasping rather loudly. “IIIIIs thiiiiis what they mean when they say IIIIII’ll catch the gay?” 

 

“Being gay isn’t a disease, Trin,” Michael’s jaw was clenched, and he could see Liv tense at her desk. Michael’s eye twitched, and he resorted to the offense. “I mean, you should know. You kissed a gay guy all throughout eighth grade and you’re obviously not gay. If you were you’d know how to put together an outfit.” The class burst out giggling, and Trinity’s eyes lit up in anger, and she slammed his phone on Michael’s desk as she slunk back to her desk. His daily five minutes of Trinity hell over with, Mikey pulled out his pencil just as the bell rung, signaling Mrs. Bentley’s entrance into the classroom, as well as the beginning of class. 

  
  
  


Michael and Liv sat down at their table yet again, Michael’s tray piled high with vegetables, which he has identified as the most edible food in the school building. He smiled as Zach sat next to him, arguing with Ness about something or another. 

 

“And  _ that’s _ why I think it’s truly a masterpiece of an album!”

 

“Alright, but in the end it’s just some straight guy talking about weed and being sad.” Ness retorted, and Zach’s hands found his hair. 

 

“You  _ cannot _ tell me that Khalid is just about weed and being sad. I mean, yeah, that’s part of it, but he takes such an artistic take on heartbreak and the entrance into adulthood and the toxic masculinity that comes with it!”

 

“You mean that he wants to get high because a girl left him?” 

 

“What about 8TEEN? When he explicitly states that he can’t talk to his parents about his mental issues because they’re not understanding. Not  _ only _ does that address the toxic masculinity expected of men, that they shouldn’t have emotions, but also the issues that most black households hold with mental illnesses,” Zach shot back with a finishing note, and Ness rolled her eyes. 

 

“Fine. You win this round,” she conceded, and Zach shot a grin. As he went to take a bite of his food, a girl sat down next to him. 

 

“I’m so sorry, were you talking about Khalid?” She asked, and Zach nodded, eyeing her suspiciously. “I love him! He’s the best!” Michael glanced over at her, and he had to admit she was pretty. Her hair, in box braids with a blue streak running down a segment, was styled in a bun high atop her head. She was wearing a mustard yellow sweater that had a small rose on the upper right collar bone. Michael noticed she had cut it herself, and the cut fell just below her ribs. She also had high waisted “mom” jeans, and a pair of heeled boots that go right over her ankles. Her makeup was meticulously styled, and Michael noticed that Zach’s full attention was captured by her. 

 

“Uh- yeah… we w- we were,” he answered, and Ness scoffed from across the table. 

 

“Smooth.” Liv hit her gently, and the group turned back to listen to the two. 

 

“I’m sorry, I should introduce myself.” The mysterious girl smiled at Zach. “I’m Leigh-Anne, but you can just call me Leigh. No use in taking so much time to say a simple name.” 

 

“Oh, uh. I’m Zach! This is Ness, Liv, and Michael.” Leigh nodded at the others, before returning her attention to Zach and continuing the conversation about Khalid. Michael turned to the girls, raising his eyebrows and talking quietly. 

 

“She’s pretty.” 

 

“Oh, most definitely.” Liv responded, and Ness grabbed Liv’s hand. 

 

“If you leave me for her, I won’t blame you.” Ness spoke quietly and sincerely, and Liv snorted. 

 

“I’d never leave you. Besides, she’s got Zach on a hook.” Liv nodded towards the pair, and it was obvious the two weren’t noticing anything but their conversation. “We could probably light Zach on fire and he wouldn’t notice.” Michael laughed, his head falling back. As he laughed, a text came through to his phone. Michael pulled out his phone, tuning out the cafeteria around him as he noticed the text was from Luke. 

 

**From: Luke :)**

**To: Mikey**

**Hey sugar, hopin youre havin a good day at school. I got some text from a girl who I guess got my number from you? Im not sure about it but shes sent me about a million and a half texts lmao. Do you know her? She told me her name was Trinity.**

 

**From: Mikey**

**To: Luke :)**

**Hey sorry about that. she stole my phone before 1st period and shes got killer memory so she mustve memorized ur number. shes not cool. i wouldnt engage if i were u but im not ur mom**

 

**From: Luke :)**

**To: Mikey**

**Ill take your word for it :) Ive got to get back to work, helping prepare and double files for new night/weekend psychologists. Also gotta help prep a room, so Im gonna be suuuuper sore tonight**

 

**From: Mikey**

**To: Luke :)**

**Lol poor bby. id offer to give u a massage but ull have to wait till saturday**

 

**From: Luke :)**

**To: Mikey**

**Lookin forward to it. Peace out hon!**

 

Michael smiled as he slipped his phone back into his pocket and tuned back into the conversation. 

 

“See, they’re both gone. We could light the cafe on fire and they wouldn’t care.”

 

“Care or notice?” Ness questioned, and Liv snorted. 

 

“Both.” 

 

“Hey! I’m paying attention!” Michael shot, and Ness laughed. 

 

“No you weren’t. You were going googly eyes over Luke.” 

 

“I mean, yeah, that’s fair-” Michael started, and Liv cut him off. 

 

“End of the discussion, Mikey.” As he went to respond, the bell rang, and he got up to move to his next class with Ness. 

  
  
  
  
  


At the end of the day, Michael walked to the front door to wait for his friends. He leaned against the wall, his nose in his phone, before noticing the feeling of eyes on him. He glanced up, noticing Rob with his arms crossed, watching Michael. Michael shrugged a bit, looking away, and when he looked up again Rob was closer. Michael scratched the back of his neck, shaking his head, and watching closely as Rob inched closer. That is, until Pr. Trenton walked up.    
  


“C’mon, get moving. You’ve got detention to get to.” Jeff looked over at Michael, smiling at him before escorting Rob to his punishment. As they walked off, Liv walked up. 

 

“Hey, Zach and Ness are waiting in the car.” Michael smiled, intertwining his arm with Liv’s. They walked out to the car together, and got into their respective seats. Ness peeled out of the parking lot, and drove off towards the groups houses. 

  
  



End file.
